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A  CLASS  BOOK 

FOR 

JEWISH  YOUTH  OF  BOTH  SEXES; 

CONTAINING  AN 

% 

ABRIDGED  HISTORY  OF  THE  BIBLE, 


AND  BIOGRAPHICAL  NOTICES  OF  THE  PATRIARCHS,  PROPHETS,  RU- 
LERS, AND  KINGS  OF  ISRAEL.      A  CONCISE  ACCOUNT  OF  ALL 
THE    FESTIVALS,    FASTS      AND    DISTINGUISHED    PERIODS 
THROUGHOUT  THE  YEAR;     A  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE 
CEREMONIES    AND  CUSTOMS,     WITH   THEIR    EX- 
PLANATIONS ;    AND  ALSO  A  SERIES   OF  RE- 
LIGIOUS    AND    MORAL     LESSONS,     AS 
DEDUCED     FROM     HOLY     WRIT. 

BY  THE    REV.    H.   A.    HENRY. 


"Train  up  a  child  in  the  way  he  shhutd]^  yivQyohen  he  is  *hd  he 
will  not  depart  from  it."— Pro  v.  22 :  O.'  •  **  •     »    *         '  *  • 


NEW-YORK: 
L.  H.  FRANK,  PRINTER  AND  PUBLISHER, 

687    BROADWAY. 

5634—1874, 


{Ht-t 


Entered  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1851, 

By  KEt.  H.  A.  HE^RY, 

In  the  Clerks  office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  State  of  Ohio. 


Entered  according  to  act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1866, 

By  L.  H.  FRANK, 

In  the  Clerk's  office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  Southern  Disrict  of 

the  State  of  New  York. 


•  »  •  •  •  i 


AUTHOK'S  PREFACE. 


In  presenting  this  little  work  to  the  Jewish  pnblic,  I  respectfully 
offer  some  few  observations  explanatory  of  its  nature,  and  of  the 
motives  which  lead  to  its  publication. 

In  the  course  of  many  years'  experience  as  the  principal  of  the 
Jews'  Free  School,  London,  and  also  as  a  private  tutor,  I  have 
observed,  with  regret,  the  insufficiency  of  our  present  system  of 
religious  education.  To  assist  in  the  amelioration  of  that  system 
has  long  been  my  most  anxious  wish. 

The  children  of  our  community  are  taught  to  read  and  translate 
the  Hebrew  Bible ;  but  many  of  them  are  permitted  to  attain  ma- 
turity uninformed  in  the  fundemental  principles  of  our  Holy  and 
Ancient  Religion. 

I  admit  that  many  very  learned  works  have  been  composed  for 
the  instruction  of  Jewish  youth ;  but,  unfortunately,  none  of  them 
appear  to  have  remedied  the  defect  of  which  I  complain.  Their  style 
and  phraseology  are  so  complicated,  that,  independently  of  the 
language  in  which  they  are  written,  they  are  not  adapted  to  the 
capacities  of  children,  at  the  early  age,  when  the  precepts  of  religion 
and  morality  should  be  first  inculcated. 

None  can  observe,  without  regret,  the  neglect  into  which  Hebrew 
literature  has  fallen!  No  conscientious  Israelite  will  deny  its 
importance,  for  it  is  unalienably  associated  with  his  religion. 

Let  it  not  be  said,  at  this  era,  when  the  desire  of  effecting  educa- 
tional improvement  is  almost  universal  that  the  Israelites  alone  are 
careless  in  this  respect.  They  should  remember  that  they  were 
selected  by  the  Almighty  to  be  the  depositories  of  His  Holy  Law! 
and  that,  to  demonstrate  its  truth  and  beauty,  is  their  indispensable 
duty. 

I  believe  that  brighter  days  are  in  prospect !  That  ere  long,  a 
knowledge  of  Hebrew  literature  will  be  deemed  an  essential  ele- 


M5494 


IV  PREFACE 

ment  of  a  finished  Jewish  education ;  and  that,  by  means  of  accurate 
translations,  the  treasures  of  our  sacred  writings  will  be  rendered 
generally  available. 

It  has  been  judiciously  said  by  the  wise  King  of  Israel:  "Train 
up  a  child  in  the  way  he  should  go,  and  when  he  is  old  he  will  not 
depart  from  it" 

Mindful  of  this  salutary  admonition  of  the  Eoyal  Sage,  I  have 
prepared  the  following  pages  for  the  instruction  of  my  juvenile  co- 
religionists. My  object  is,  to  implant  in  their  minds  the  desire  to 
obtain  a  knowledge  of  the  sacred  writings. 

The  critic  must  not  expect  elaborate  diction,  or  elegance  of  compo- 
sition in  a  work  of  this  nature ;  to  have  attempted  these,  would  rather 
have  tended  to  defeat  than  to  aid  my  purpose.  The  work  has  been 
composed  for  the  instruction  of  Jewish  children  as  soon  as  they 
commence  learning  to  read.  I  have,  therefore,  sought  to  inculcate 
the  most  important  religious  information  in  the  simplest  language ; 
still  I  invite  the  learned  to  a  perusal  of  this  humble  volume.  Should 
they  perceive  its  utility,  they  will  admit  the  propriety  of  its  being 
generally  used  in  all  our  schools,  as  an  elementary  book  of  religious 
instruction  and  biblical  knowledge. 

The  composition  of  School  Books  requires  great  care.  The  lessons 
intended  to  be  conveyed  should  be  clearly,  and  at  the  same  time 
simply  expressed ;  for,  the  more  pleasing  they  are  rendered,  the 
more  readily  will  the  pupil  receive  them,  and  the  more  durable  will 
be  their  impression. 

He  who  undertakes  this  duty  may  fairly  hope  that  his  labors  will 
be  indulgently  appreciated. 

The  work  consists  of  two  parts :  the  first  part  contains  a  short 
History  of  the  Bible,  from  the  creation  of  the  world  to  the  period 
when  it  pleased  the  Divine  Being  to  reveal  himself  to  his  people, 
and  to  favor  them  with  the  Decalogue — the  source  of  all  religious 
and  moral  laws. 

The  historical  epitome  is  followed  by  a  series  of  short  lessons, 
inculcating  the  principles  of  religion  and  morality,  pointing  out  the 
duties  which  we  owe  to  God,  to  our  fellow  creatures,  and  to  our- 
selves. Next  in  succession  will  be  found  biographical  notices  of 
all  the  Hebrew  Patriarchs,  Kulers,  Kings,  and  Prophets,  commenc- 
ing with  the  Patriarch  Abraham,  and  ending  with  Malachi,  the  last 
of  the  prophets. 

The  second  division  of  the  work  contains  treatises  on  the  Ten 


PREFACE  V 

Commandments,  and  on  the  Thirteen  Creeds.  A  concise  acconnt 
of  all  the  festivals  and  fasts  in  their  order  of  succession,  in  every 
month  throughout  the  year ;  together,  with  a  description  of  various 
customs  observed  by  the  Israelite,  both  in  private  and  in  public. 

Should  this  little  volume  prove  the  means  of  assisting  the  zealous 
laborer  in  the  cause  of  Scriptural  instruction,  I  shall  consider  myself 
amply  requited ;  and  still  greater  will  be  my  reward  if  it  be  kindly 
received  and  duly  appreciated  by  those  for  whom  it  is  intended. 
Cincinnati,  5611 — 1851. 


PUBLISHEE'S  PEBFACE. 


In  presenting  this  new  edition  of  Dr.  Henry's  Class  Book  to 
the  Public,  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  dwell  upon  its  merits.  Every 
Teacher  of  the  Jewish  Keligion,  who  has  had  occasion  to  use  it, 
knows  its  superiority  over  all  works  of  its  kind.  And  all  those  who 
are  not  familiar  with  its  contents  we  may  venture  to  assure  that  it 
will  amply  repay  their  perusal  of  it ;  for,  though  it  is  primarily 
intended  for  the  use  of  the  young,  it  is  instructive  also  to  those  of 
maturer  age,  containing,  as  it  does,  a  true,  though  abridged  record 
of  one  of  the  most  ancient  of  nations,  and  a  full  exposition  of  its 
religious  laws,  ceremonies  and  customs.  Thus  it  may  be  found 
useful  not  only  to  Israelites  but  also  to  all  enlightened  Gentiles  who 
may  desire  to  inform  themselves  of  those  subjects. 

The  popularity  which  this  little  work  gained  upon  the  issuse  of 
the  first  edition  has  induced  the  undersigned  to  ask  the  Kev.  Author's 
permission  to  republish  the  same ;  which  permission  was  kindly  and 
readily  given,  and  for  which  the  thanks  of  the  undersigned  are  here- 
with publicly  expressed,  not  as  much  for  his  sake  as  for  the  good  the 
author  has  thus  bestowed,  as  it  is  sincerely  believed,  upon  the 
public  at  large. 

THE  PUBLISHER. 
New-York,  June,  5626.— 1866. 


This  is  to  certify  that  I  have  authorized 
Mr.  L.  H.  Frajstk  to  publish  my  Class  Book. 

H.  A.  HEIRT, 

Rabbi  Preacher  of  Congregation  Sherith  Israel. 

San  Francisco,  Cal,  March  4th,  1864,-6624. 


WORKS  BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 

DISCOURSES  ON"  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  THE  RELIGIOUS 
RELIEF  OF  ISRAEL,  AS  PRODUCTIVE  OF  HUMAN 
HAPPINESS  AND  MORAL  IMPROVEMENT. 

THE  FORM  OF  THANKSGIVING  FOR  JEWISH  LADIES 
ON  REPAIRING  TO  THE  SYNAGOG LTE  AFTER  THEIR 
ACCOUCHEMENT. 

ANTIQUITY  OF  FREEMASONRY  IN  GENERAL. 

A  SYNOPSIS  OF  JEWISH  HISTORY. 

DISCOURSES  ON  THE  BOOK  OF  GENESIS. 


A  CLASS  BOOK 


FOR 


JEWISH   YOUTH. 


THE    CREATION. 


God  made  all  things.  There  was  a  time  when  there 
was  no  sun,  nor  moon,  nor  stars,  nor  any  thing  that  had 
life.  Even  the  earth,  on  which  we  live,  was  not  made. 
And  the  great  God  made  all  things  out  of  nothing. 

In  six  days  God  made  the  world  in  which  we  live. 

On  the  first  day,  God  made  the  light. 

On  the  second  day,  He  made  the  sky  above  us,  called 
Heaven. 

On  the  third  day,  He  made  the  earth  and  the  sea,  as 
also  all  trees,  grass,  fruit,  and  all  things  that  grow  in 
the  earth. 

On  the  fourth  day,  He  made  the  sun,  the  moon,  and 
the  stars.  The  sun  to  give  light  by  day,  and  to  warm 
the  earth,  and  cause  all  things  to  grow  for  our  use. 
The  moon  and  stars  to  give  light  by  night,  when  the 
sun  goes  down. 

On  the  fifth  day,  God  made  the  fish,  to  live  in  the 
water,  and  the  birds,  to  fly  in  the  air. 

On  the  sixth  day,  God  made  all  cattle,  beasts,  and 
all  Jiving  things  that  creep  on  the  earth,  and  then,  Man 
was  made  out  of  the  dust  of  the  earth. 

God  made  man  the  last  of  all,  so  that  all  things 
should  be  ready  for  his  useu 

God  then  made  a  woman,  to  be  with  the  man. 

The  name  of  the  first  man  was  tna  Adam.  And  the 
name  of  the  first  woman  was  mn  Eve. 


8  A     CLA3S    BOOK    FOR    JEWISH    YOUTH 

Thus  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  and  all  things  in 
them,  were  made  in  six  days.  And  God  saw  all  that  he 
had  made  was  very  good.  And  God  rested  on  the 
seventh  day,  and  blessed  it,  and  made  it  holy. 

This  day  is  called  tata  Sabbath:  which  means  rest- 
day% 

When  God  rested  on  the  seventh  day,  it  was,  to 
teach  us  to  work  all  the  week,  and  rest  on  the  roE> 
and  on  that  day,  to  thank  God  for  all  the  good  things 
he  gives  us,  and  to  pray  to  him,  and  to  praise  him  for 
his  goodness  to  us  at  all  times. 

God  did  not  rest  on  the  Sabbath  day  because  he  was 
tired.  No  !  it  was  only  to  show  us  that  we  must  keep 
it  holy.  We  must  not  be  seen  in  the  streets  at  play  on 
that  holy  day.  We  must  go  to  the  House  of  God,  or  to 
school,  to  hear  our  min  holy  law  read,  which  will  teach 
us  to  be  good  children,  and  show  us  the  way  how  to 
pray  to  God,  and  praise  him  for  all  his  goodness  to  us, 
by  day  and  by  night. 

How  great  must  God  be,  who  made  all  things !  He 
is  very  good  and  kind  to  all  that  he  has  made.  All  the 
works  of  the  Lord  praise  him.  Let  all  that  have  breath, 
praise  the  Lord. 

CAIN  AND    ABEL. 

Adam  had  two  sons,  Cain  and  Abel.  Adam  did  not 
bring  them  up  to  be  idle.  We  must  all  do  some  work. 
inn  Abel  was  a  keeper  of  sheep.  He  was  a  very  good 
man.  "pp  Cain  was  a  tiller  of  the  ground,  but  he  was 
not  so  good  as  Abel.  After  some  time,  Cain  took  of  the 
fruit  of  the  ground,  to  offer  unto  the  Lord.  Abel  brought 
some  of  the  very  best  fat  sheep  also  to  offer  up  to  the 
Lord.  God  wTas  pleased  with  Abel  because  he  brought 
his  offering  with  a  good  heart.  But  Cain  did  not,  and 
so  the  Lord  did  not  show  him  that  favor.  Then  Cain 
was  very  sad ;  and  one  day,  when  he  was  in  the  field 
writh  his  brother  Abel,  he  fell  upon  him,  and  killed  him. 

Then  God  called  unto  Cain,  and  said  unto  him, 
Where  is  thy  brother  Abel  ?    And  Cain  said,  I  do  not 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR    JEWISH    YOUTH  9 

know !  Am  I  my  brother's  keeper?  God  was  very  angry 
with  Cain.  Cain  made  his  crime  worje  by  telling  a 
story  to  God,  who  can  see  all  things  even  if  we  try  to 
hide  them. 

Cain  then  went  away  from  the  place  he  lived  in ;  but 
after  that,  he  was  sorry  for  what  he  had  done,  and  God 
in  his  goodness  forgave  him. 

When  we  pray  to  God,  we  must  do  so  in  a  proper 
manner.  We  must  think  well  to  whom  we  are  praying, 
and  then  our  prayers  will  be  heard  by  the  Almighty. 

When  the  world  became  full  of  people,  they  grew 
very  wicked.  And  God  sent  a  great  deal  of  rain  to 
drown  them  all.   This  was  called  the  biaia  flood. 

Among  these  wicked  people  there  was  one  good  man, 
whose  name  was  rw  Noah.  Noah  had  three  sons, 
toffl  Shem,  tin  Ham,  and  n&">  Japheth.  God  saved  Noah 
and  all  his  family  from  the  flood.  God  told  him  to  build 
the  ark,  to  live  in,  while  the  flood  lasted,  and  to  take 
into  the  ark  with  him  some  of  all  kinds  of  beasts  and 
birds. 
J^  The  rain  came  down  during  forty  days  and  forty 
*  nights. 

The  flood  lasted  one  year  and  ten  days.  After  the 
flood,  God  said  he  would  no  more  send  a  flood  to  drown 
all  on  the  earth  again ;  and  as  a  sign,  he  set  the  rainbow 
in  the  heavens. 

The  people  who  lived  after  the  flood  were  afraid  they 
should  be  drowned,  and  so  they  built  a  high  tower, 
which  was  called  bra  Babel. 

God  did  not  let  these  people  finish  the  work.  The 
people  then  went  to  all  parts  of  the  world,  and  formed 
themselves  into  many  tribes  and  nations. 

These  people  did  not  know  the  true  God.  And  God 
sent  our  pious  forefather  Emma  Abraham  to  teach  them, 
and  show  them  how  to  pray  to,  'and  praise  God.  Abra- 
ham was  the  founder  of  our  faith. 

God  told  Abraham  to  go  to  the  land  of  *p«5  Canaan. 
And  Abraham  did  as  the  Lord  had  told  him,  and 
took  with  him  his  wife  rTMB  Sarah,    and   his  nephew 


10  A    CLASS    BOOK   FOR   JEWISH    lOUTH 

fcib  Lot,  who  was  the  son  of  Tin  Haran,  the  brother  of 
Abraham. 

Abraham  had  two  sons,  fcrtm  Isaac  and  istfteai  Ish- 
mael.  Isaac  was  so  good  that  the  Lord  told  his  father 
to  bring  him  unto  the  Mount  of  rrVfifc  Moriah,  and  offer 
him  up  to  the  Lord,  to  show  the  world  how  God  loved 
him,  and  how  ready  he  was  to  serve  his  God,  even  with 
his  life.  Abraham  was  willing  to  do  as  God  had  told 
him,  and  took  Isaac,  his  only  son,  to  offer  him  up  to 
the  Lord;  but  when  God. saw  how  ready  Abraham  was 
to  serve  him,  he  would  not  suffer  Isaac  to  be  killed,  and 
said  to  Abraham:  Isaac,  thy  son,  shall  be  a  very  great 
man. 

Isaac  had  two  sons  Sp^  Jacob  and  1B2  Esau. 

Isaac's  wife  was  named  npm  Rebecca. 

Jacob  was  a  pious  man,  and  dwelt  in  his  tent,  and 
was  at  all  times  at  study.  Esau  was  a  man  of  rude 
habits,  and  passed  his  time  in  the  field,  hunting  wild 
beasts. 

Jacob  bought  the  birthright  of  his  brother  Esau  for 
a  mess  of  pottage,  which  he  gave  him  one  day  when  he 
came  home  very  hungry,  and  much  fatigued. 
y  Jacob  had  twelve  sons,  and  one  daughter,  whose 
name  was  ftm  Dinah.  The  names  of  Jacob's  sons  were 
■plan  Reuben,  TUPOT  Simeon,  *nb  Levi,  rmm  Judah, 
tafiffiffll,>  Issachar,  'yiiai  Zebulun,  "pfcixa  Benjamin,  yi  Dan, 
^briStt  Naphtali,  "U  Gad,  *TO*  Asher,  and  cp-n  Joseph. 

Jacob  loved  Joseph  more  than  all  the  rest  of  his 
children,  and  he  made  him  a  coat  of  many  colors. 
Joseph's  brothers  were  jealous  of  him ;  and  one  day, 
when  Jacob  sent  him  to  look  after  them  and  their  flock, 
they  sold  Joseph  for  a  slave,  and  he  was  taken  down  to 
d^Sfc  Egypt.  Joseph,  by  his  good  conduct,  was  made 
the  ruler  over  Egypt.  Joseph  did  not  forget  his  father 
Jacob,  although  he  was  raised  to  so  high  an  office. 
While  Joseph  was  the  ruler  in  Egypt  there  was  a 
famine  in  the  land,  and  his  brothers  came  from  Canaan 
to  buy  corn ;  they  did  not  know  Joseph,  but  he  knew 
them.     Joseph  asked  his    brothers  whether  his  tather 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        11 

was  still  alive.  He  then  gave  them  plenty  of  corn  and 
money,  and  said  to  them,  Go  home  and  tell  my  father 
that  I  am  the  Governor  over  Egypt,  and  that  he  shall 
come  down  to  me  with  all  his  children,  and  I  will  make 
him  hapny  in  his  old  age.  Joseph's  brothers  went  home, 
and  told  their  father  all  that  they  had  seen,  and  Jacob 
went  down  to  Egypt,  to  his  dear  child  Joseph,  and  lived 
happy  all  the  rest  of  his  days. 

Jacob  had  two  wives,  bn^i  Rachel,  and  n»l  Leah. 
Rachel  was  the  mother  of  Joseph  and  Benjamin. 

Joseph  had  two  sons,  E^ISa  Ephraim,  and  TO9& 
Manasseh.  Joseph  died  in  a  good  old  age,  after  having 
seen  his  children  very  numerous  and  happy. 

After  the  death  of  Joseph,  the  b&IE?  ^n  children  of 
Israel  were  used  ill  by  the  King  of  Egypt.  He  made 
them  work  very  hard,  and  made  their  lives  bitter ;  and 
they  cried  unto  the  Lord  to  help  them. 

And  God  heard  their  cry,  and  sent  Moses  and  Aaron 
to  the  King  of  Egypt,  to  tell  him  to  send  the  people  of 
Israel  out  of  his  country. 

Pharaoh,  the  King  of  Egypt,  did  not  obey  God,  and 
God  sent  ten  plagues  in  Egypt. 

At  the  last  plague,  Pharaoh  came  crying  to  Moses 
and  Aaron,  saying,  Get  out  of  my  country,  you,  and  all 
your  people,  and  all  their  cattle,  and  all  that  belongs  to 
them.  Do  go,  I  pray  you,  for  otherwise  I  fear  we  shall 
all  of  us  die. 

On  the  same  night  all  the  children  of  Israel,  men, 
women,  and  children,  went  up  out  of  Egypt.  And  they 
departed  in  such  haste,  that  they  were  obliged  to  take 
their  dough  for  their  bread  on  their  shoulders,  and  bake 
it  in  the  sun. 

God  sent  the  pillar  of  cloud,  to  show  them  the  way  by 
day,  and  the  pillar  of  fire,  to  light  them  by  night. 

After  Pharaoh  had  let  the  people  go,  he  was  sorry 
that  he  had  done  so;  he  called  his  army  together,  and 
said  to  them,  what  have  we  done,  to  let  Israel  go? 
Come,  we  will  follow  them,  and  bring  them  back  to 
their  work. 


12        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

When  the  children  of  Israel  saw  the  army  of  the 
Egyptians  behind  them,  they  were  much  afraid,  and 
complained  to  Moses.  Moses  prayed  to  God,  who  said, 
be  not  afraid,  and  you  shall  see  what  I  will  do  to  these 
people  of  Egypt.  The  Lord  then  caused  the  waters  of 
the  Red  Sea  to  stand  up  like  a  wall  on  either  side,  and 
the  children  of  Israel  passed  through  the  Red  Sea  on 
dry  land. 

Pharaoh  and  his  army  seeing  this,  came  after  them, 
and  when  he  and  his  host  were  in  the  midst  of  the  sea, 
the  Lord  sent  the  waters  back  again  into  their  place,  and 
thus  the  whole  army  of  Pharaoh  was  drowned. 

When  the  people  of  Israel  saw  this  great  work  that 
the  Lord  had  done  for  them,  then  they  sang  praises  unto 
their  God  in  gratitude  for  his  kindness  in  saving  them 
from  the  power  of  their  enemies. 

The  Almighty  fed  them  with  manna,  which  he  sent 
them  from  Heaven  every  morning,  during  forty  years, 
till  they  came  to  the  holy  land. 

The  manna  did  not  come  down  on  MB  because  it  was 
a  rest-day.  God  therefore  sent  a  double  portion  on  Friday, 
and  Moses  told  the  people  to  save  one  half  for  the 
Sabbath.  God  gave  them  water  to  drink,  which  he 
niade  to  flow  from  a  flinty  rock. 

In  the  third  month,  after  the  children  of  Israel  had  left 
Egypt,  the  Almighty  came  down  in  his  glory,  on  Mount 
Sinai,  and  gave  to  the  whole  nation,  who  stood  round 
the  mount,  the  Ten  Commandments.  These  Ten 
Commandments  the  people  heard  from  the  mouth  of  God 
himself,  as  we  read  in  our  Holy  Bible. 

nrcnn  rrwt 

THE  TEN    COMMANDMENTS. 

1st.  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  who  brought  thee  out 
from  the  land  of  Egypt. 

2nd.  Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before  me  ;  thou 
shalt  not  bow  down  to  them,  nor  serve  them. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        13 

3rd.  Thou  shalt  not  take  the  name  of  the  Lord,  thy 
God,  in  vain. 

4th.     Remember  the  Sabbath  day,  to  keep  it  holy. 

5th.     Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother. 

6th.     Thou  shalt  not  commit  murder. 

7th.     Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery. 

8th.     Thou  shalt  not  steal. 

9th.  Thou  shalt  not  bear  false  witness  against  thy 
neighbor. 

10th.  Thou  shalt  not  covet  thy  neighbor's  property. 

After  the  Almighty  had  spoken  these  Ten  Command- 
ments, Moses  went  up  to  the  Mount  Sinai,  and  stayed 
there  forty  days  and  forty  nights. 

During  the  time  Moses  was  on  the  mount,  God  taught 
him  all  the  laws  and  statutes,  which  Moses  afterward 
taught  to  the  people,  and  which  they  were  to  observe 
when  they  came  to  Canaan. 

God  gave  to  Moses,  while  he  was  on  the  mount,  the 
two  tables  of  stone,  on  which  were  written  the  Ten 
Commandments.  These  Ten  Commandments  teach  us 
our  duty  to  our  God,  to  our  parents,  teachers,  and  all 
other  people. 

Our  duty  to  God  is,  to  love  him,  and  to  obey  his 
laws.  Hear,  0  Israel,  the  Lord  our  God  is  One  God  | 
there  can  be  no  other  beside  him.  All  things  are  his, 
and  we  are  all  under  his  care.  He  sees  all  that  we  do, 
even  if  we  try  to  hide  it.  He  knows  all  our  thoughts, 
and  can  tell  the  end  of  all  things  before  they  are  begun. 
God  rewards  those  that  do  good,  and  will  punish  those 
that  are  bad.  We  must  love  the  Lord  God  with  all  our 
heart,  and  with  all  our  soul.  We  must  keep  his  laws, 
and  do  them,  so  that  we  may  be  happy  all  the  days  of 
our  life.  If  we,  by  mistake,  do  wrong,  and  sin  against 
the  Lord,  we  must  repent,  and  not  do  the  like  again,  and 
then  God  will  forgive  us:  for  the  Lord  is  kind  to  all  who 
truly  repent,  and  amend  their  conduct. 

It  is  the  duty  of  children  to  love  their  father  and  their 
mother,  to  respect  them,  to  honor  them,  and  to  do  all 
they  desire  them.    Children  should  always  think  of  the 


14       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

trouble  their  parents  have  had  to  bring  them  up  from 
their  infancy,  till  able  to  do  for  themselves.  How  they 
nurse,  feed,  clothe,  and  shelter  them,  and  instruct  them, 
so  that  they  may  grow  up  wise  and  good.  Children 
should  never  tease,  nor  vex  their  parents ;  they  should 
do  all  they  are  bid,  and  be  ready  to  attend  to  them  the 
moment  they  call.  And  when  children  grow  up  they 
must  try  and  do  all  they  can  to  make  their  parents  happy 
in  their  old  age.  And  the  Lord  will  always  bless  such 
children  who  do  tneir  duty  to  their  parents. 

Respect  your  teachers,  fear  them,  and  honor  them ; 
attend  to  all  they  tell  you.  Study  your  lessons,  and  do 
not  idle  your  time.  Observe  the  commands  of  your 
teachers,  for  they  will  lead  you  into  the  paths  of  virtue, 
and  point  out  the  road  to  knowledge.  And  when  you 
grow  old,  you  will  bless  your  teachers  for  having  taught 
you,  for  then  you  will  know  how  to  value  education. 

A  good  child  is  happy  when  he  goes  to  school ;  but  a 
bad  child  is  glad  when  he  can  stop  away  from  school. 

Love  all  people,  be  kind  to  all  men,  and  also  to 
animals.  Do  not  hurt  your  brothers  or  sisters,  or  any 
of  your  playmates.  Do  not  fight  or  quarrel  with  any  of 
your  schoolmates.  Be  always  on  good  terms  with  them, 
and  you  will  be  happy.  Be  kind  and  tender  to  all  birds 
and  fowls,  which  cannot  protect  themselves  if  you  hurt 
them. 

Do  not  vex  a  stranger,  or  use  him  ill  in  any  way.  Do 
not  think  to  tease  him  because  he  was  not  born  in  this 
country;  no,  you  must  try  to  assist  him,  because  he 
comes  from  a  strange  place,  and  if  you  were  to  be  sent 
from  your  home,  you  would  not  like  any  one  to  treat 
you  ill. 

If  God  shall  bless  you  with  riches,  assist  the  poor  as 
much  as  you  can.  Do  not  say,  come  again,  and  then  I 
will  give  you,  for  who  knows  that  you  may  have  the 
power  to  give  when  you  wish  to  do  so ;  for  riches  are  not 
bestowed  on  us  to  save,  but  to  be  given  to  the  poor, 
to  help  them;  and  they  will  be  grateful  to  you  for 
relief. 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR    JEWISH    YOUTH  15 

The  Lord  giveth,  and  the  Lord  taketh.  Praised  be 
the  name  of  the  Lord. 

Do  not  use  yourself  to  tell  tales,  for  they  do  much 
harm,  and  never  can  do  good  to  any  one.  To  tittle  tattle 
every  little  idle  tale  is  very  wicked,  and  very  often  does 
great  harm,  and  the  Lord  never  loves  such  people. 

Never  tell  a  story,  'for  that  is  the  root  of  all  evil.  If 
you  have  done  wrong,  tell  the  truth,  and  you  will  be  for- 
given; but  no  one  will  love  you  if  you  tell  a  falsehood. 

Be  honest  in  your  dealings,  and  do  not  charge  too 
much  for  that  which  you  may  have  to  sell.  You  must 
not  ask  more  than  its  value. 

Never  use  yourself  to  swear,  for  that  is  a  very  bad 
habit,  for  the  law  says,  Thou  shalt  not  take  the  name 
of  God  in  vain ;  it  is  not  right  to  swear  to  every  trifling 
thing.  At  all  times  speak  the  truth,  and  people  will 
believe  you  without  swearing. 

We  must  not  steal  any  thing,  or  take  that  which  does 
not  belong  to  us';  it  is  very  cruel  to  take  away  from  any 
one  those  things  which  they  have  worked  for.  If  we 
wTant  any  thing,  we  must  ask  for  it,  or  work  to  try  and 
get  it,  in  the  same  way  as  our  neighbors  do. 

We  must  not  take  away,  by  force,  or  any  other  means, 
the  toys  or  playthings  from  our  schoolmates.  We  must 
be  content  with  what  we  have,  and  if  we  want  more,  we 
must  ask  for  them,  and  if  given  to  us  they  will  then  be 
our  own,  to  do  as  we  please  with  them.  Do  not  covet  or 
desire  the  things  that  are  not  your  own,  for  if  God 
wished  you  to  have  them  he  would  not  give  them  to  any 
one  else. 

God  is  good  to  all  his  creatures,  and  gives  them  what 
he  thinks  proper.  He  knows  what  is  good  for  you,  better 
than  you  do  yourself,  and  therefore,  every  one  must  thank 
God  for  what  he  has  given  him,  and  be  content ;  for  to 
be  content  is  to  be  happy. 

Do  not  use-  yourself  to  gaming.  I  mean  tossing  up 
for  money,  for  that  is  very  low  and  very  wicked.  Tossing 
up  for  money  has  brought  many  a  child  to  an  evil  end, 
because,  when  he  has  had  no  more  money  to  toss  with, 


16        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

he  has  stolen  some,  and  then  he  has  been  put  into  prison, 
and  after  that  he  has  been  sent  away  from  his  parents, 
and  all  his  friends,  to  a  distant  land,  amongst  strangers, 
where  he  has  been  severely,  but  rightly,  punished,  and 
died  of  grief.  Never  try  to  deceive  any  one :  always 
speak  plainly,  honestly,  and  boldly. 

Never  mis-lead  the  blind.  If  you  see  a  blind  man,  put 
him  in  the  right  way,  for  the  blessing  of  sight  is  very 
great.  The  blind  cannot  see  the  sun  shine  by  day,  nor 
the  bright  moon  by  night,  nor  the  number  of  small  stars 
twinkling  in  the  sky.  How  happy  ought  we  to  be  then 
with  our  sight,  and  how  thankful  ought  we  to  be  to  the 
great  God  of  all  the  world  for  that  blessing. 

Do  not  speak  ill  of  the  deaf  because  they  cannot  hear 
you,  for  if  they  learn  that  you  have  done  so,  it  will  make 
them  fret  very  much,  and  hurt  their  feelings,  and  if  they 
cry  to  God?  he  will  punish  you  for  it. 

Never  be  proud,  nor  think  too  much  of  yourself,  for  all 
men  are  alike  in  the  eyes  of  God.  We  are  all  made 
from  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and  we  do  not  know  how 
long  we  may  live,  so  we  should  at  all  times  be  in  peace 
with  all  men ;  for  what  are  we  in  the  hour  of  death  1 

The  rich  and  the  poor  are  all  the  creatures  of  one 
God.  We  must  be  meek  and  humble,  and  not  be  filled 
with  pride,  for  he  that  is  proud  is  a  fool.  God  loves  him 
that  is  poor  and  humble  in  spirit.  The  rich  are  sent 
by  God  to  help  the  poor,  and  the  poor,  in  return,  must 
wait  upon  the  rich,  and  serve  them,  and  be  grateful  for 
what  the  rich  give  them.  All  the  world  cannot  be  rich, 
for  if  that  were  the  case,  we  should  have  no  one  who 
would  work  for  us,  to  bake  our  bread,  grind  the  corn, 
build  our  houses,  and  make  our  clothes,  and  many  other 
things,  which  we  cannot  do  without.  Thus  we  see  how 
good  the  Almighty  is  to  us,  to  place  things  in  such  a 
manner,  that  the  whole  world  can  be  comfortable  and 
happy. 

Fear  the  Lord  thy  God,  for  the  fear  of  the  Lord  is 
the  begining  of  knowledge. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       17 

Pray  to  God  daily,  and  thank  him  for  all  the  good 
which  he  gives  you. 

Be  not  like  wicked  men,  who  praise  the  Lord  with 
their  mouths,  but  whose  hearts  are  full  of  deceit. 

Love  thy  neighbor  and  the  strangers  as  thyself,  do 
not  cheat  them,  nor  oppress  them,  nor  do  anything  to 
them  you  would  not  like  that  they  should  do  unto  you. 

Have  respect  for  the  aged,  rise  up  before  them,  go 
into  their  company,  and  listen  to  their  advice,  for  among 
the  old  there  is  wisdom  to  be  found. 

Be  a  father  to  the  needy,  and  a  friend  to  the  poor ; 
never  despise  thenij  for  you  do  not  know  what  your  end 
may  be. 

Love  all  men,  both  rich  and  poor,  whether  thy  brother 
or  a  stranger,  for  one  God  has  created  us  all.  We  ought, 
therefore,  to  live  as  friends  with  each  other.  We  are  all 
the  children  of  one  father,  who  will  not  be  pleased  with 
those  who  hate  their  fellow  creature. 

Virtue  is,  to  love  that  which  is  right,  and  hate  all  evil. 
He  is  called  virtuous  who  tries  to  do  all  the  good  in  his 
power,  and  lives  according  to  the  will  of  God, 

Honor  the  President  and  all  the  rulers  of  the  United 
States.  Have  respect  for  the  laws  of  the  country  in 
which  you  live.  Pray  for  the  welfare  and  peace  of  your 
rulers  and  country.  Our  religion  teaches  us  that  we 
should  love  the  land  in  which  we  live.  We  must  do  all 
in  our  power  for  its  happiness  and  good  order. 

God  has  made  the  love  of  our  country  sacred  to  us. 
It  is  the  duty  of  every  Israelite  (if  required)  to  defend 
his  country  from  its  enemies.  God  said  to  the  prophet 
liTW1  Jeremiah,  Tell  my  people,  the  children  of  Israel, 
Build  houses,  and  dwell  in  them,  plant  gardens,  and  eat 
the  fruit  of  them,  and  seek  to  promote  the  peace  of  the 
city  in  which  you  live,  and  pray  for  the  same  to  me,  the 
Eternal,  for  through  its  peace  you  shall  have  peace.  Be 
true  to  your  country,  fear  not,  serve  the  state,  and  you 
will  do  well. 


18        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Our  wise  men  teach  us  that  the  laws  of  the  land  must 
be  obeyed. 

A  prayer  for  the  President  and  rulers  of  the  United 
States,  as  said  in  our  synagogues  by  the  Minister  on 
every  tttto  Sabbath  and  D"H3nfc  festivals. 

May  He  who  giveth  salvation  unto  kings,  and  domin- 
ion unto  princes,  He,  whose  kingdom  is  an  everlasting 
kingdom,  He,  who  delivered  his  servant  David  from 
the  sword,  He  who  maketh  a  way  in  the  sea,  and  a 
path  through  the  mighty  waters,  may  He  bless,  pre- 
serve, guard,  assist,  exalt,  and  highly  aggrandize  their 
excellencies  the  President  and  Vice-President  of  the 
United  States  of  America,  the  Governors  of  the  various 
States  in  the  Union,  the  members'  of  Congress,  and  the 
Mayor  and  Common  Council  of  the  city.     Amen. 

May  the  Supreme  King  of  kings,  in  his  infinite  mercy, 
preserve  them,  grant  them  long  life,  and  deliver  them 
from  all  trouble,  sorrow,  and  danger.  May  He  let  them 
subdue  nations  under  their  feet,  cause  all  their  enemies 
to  fall  before  them,  and  render  them  prosperous  in  all 
their  undertakings. 

May  the  Supreme  King  of  kings,  in  his  great  mercy, 
incline  their  hearts,  and  the  hearts  of  all  their  counsellors 
to  deal  kindly  with  us,  and  all  Israel.  In  their  days, 
and  in  our  days,  may  Judah  be  saved,  and  Israel  dwell 
happily  with  all  men,  and  may  the  Redeemer  come  unto 
Zion. 

May  this  be  the  will  of  the  gracious  God,  and  let  us 
say,  Amen. 

PRAYER. 

My  dear  child,  when  you  awake  in  the  morning, 
your  first  thoughts  must  be  directed  to  God,  to  return 
him  thanks  for  his  goodness  in  favoring  you  with  life  to 
see  the  new-born  day.  When  we  pray  to  God,  we  must 
do  so  with  proper  feeling  and  respect.  We  must  always 
think  well  before  whom  we  are  standing,  and  our  thoughts 
must  be  directed  to  God  when  we  are  praying. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        19 

When  we  go  to  a  place  of  worship  we  must  behave 
respectfully,  and  not  talk  or  play  during  the  service. 
If  we  pray  to  God  to  help  us,  we  must  not  do  it  in  a 
careless  manner,  for  that  would  show  that  we  do  not 
mean  what  we  say.  If  we  had  a  favor  to  ask  of  any 
person,  would  it  be  decent  to  present  our  address  in  a 
careless  manner?  If  we  did,  we  must  expect  to  be 
refused. 

Therefore,  when  we  address  the  Almighty  in  prayer, 
our  minds  ought  to  be  filled  with  awe  and  respect,  and 
then  God  will  listen  to  our  prayers  and  supplications. 
The  Eternal  is  near  unto  all  who  call  upon  him  in  truth. 
He  grants  the  desire  of  those  who  fear  him  and  love  him, 
and  try  to  act  in  a  proper  manner. 

RELIGION. 

Religion  teaches  us  to  adore  God,  to  think  of  his 
goodness,  of  his  power,  and  his  wisdom,  and  to  obey  his 
laws.  We  must  fear  God,  and  keep  his  commandments, 
for  this  is  the  whole  duty  of  man.  We  can  only  be  said 
to  be  truly  religious  when  we  declare  the  Almighty,  our 
God  and  Creator,  to  be  the  only  perfect  Being,  and  think, 
and  act,  and  live  as  God  directs  us  in  his  holy  law. 

Religion  renders  man  good  and  happy.  We  must 
regard  it  as  the  greatest  of  all  blessings,  for  as  a  loving 
father  wishes  to  instruct  his  children,  and  put  them  in 
the  right  way,  so  has  the  Lord  made  his  will  known  unto 
us,  and  taught  us  how  we  are  to  adore  him,  and  so  make 
ourselves  happy,  and  for  this  purpose  God  gave  us  his 
rrcrnpn  rrnri  Holy  Law,  which  teaches  us  how  to  act, 
and  conduct  ourselves  in  a  proper  manner  through  life. 
Remember  ye  the  law  of  Moses,  my  servant,  to  whom  I 
gave  my  commands  on  Mount  Horeb,  for  all  Israel. 

Our  religion  is  called  the  Mosaic  religion,  because 
Moses  was  our  law-giver. 

All  men  do  not  think  alike  respecting  the  mode  of 
worshipping  God.  All  nations  serve  God  in  the  manner 
they  think  best.  We  must  therefore  not  interfere  with 
any  other  religion.    We  must  strictly  attend  to  our  own 


20        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

religion,  and  obey  its  laws.  We  must  nevertheless  have 
respect  for  all  religions,  and  those  who  follow  them. 

Our  t^frsn  wise  men  therefore  teach  us  that  the  pious 
of  all  nations  have  a  share  in  the  world  to  come. 

God  will  reward  all  men  who  are  good,  let  their 
religion  be  what  it  may.  For  from  the  rising  of  the  sun 
to  the  setting  thereof,  the  name  of  the  Lord  is  great 
among  the  nations. 

It  is  the  sacred  duty  of  every  Israelite  to  keep  true 
to  the  religion  our  ancestors  have  handed  down  to  us. 
Thus  said  our  law-giver  Moses:  "Not  with  you  alone 
do  I  make  this  oath  and  this  promise,  but  with  those  who 
are  this  day  with  us  before  the  Eternal,  our  God,  and 
with  those  who  are  not  here  with  us  this  day*" 

brraa 

t    t  :  - 

ABRAHAM. 

Abraham,  our  forefather  was  the  son  of  mn  Terah, 
of  the  family  of  EE  the  eldest  son  of  Noah. 

Abraham  was  a  very  pious  man,  and  would  not  wor- 
ship the  idols  that  the  people  made  at  that  time.  Ab- 
raham's father  made  images,  and  worshipped  them,  and 
Abraham  was  hurt  to  see  his  father  pray  to  an  image 
made  of  wood  or  stone.  One  day,  while  his  father  was 
out,  Abraham  broke  all  the  images,  on  which  account 
the  king  had  him  thrown  into  a  fiery  furnace,  from  which 
the  Almighty  saved  him  from  being  burned,  and  he  came 
out  alive  and  unhurt,  .because  he  was  true  and  faithful 
to  his  God. 

By  the  command  of  God,  Abraham  left  his  father's 
house,  and  went  to  live  in  the  land  of  Canaan.  At 
the  time  Abraham  came  to  Canaan  there  was  a  famine 
in  the  land,  and  Abraham  went  to  live  for  a  short  time 
in  ta^Xto  Egypt.  After  the  famine  had  ceased,  Abraham 
returned  again  to  Canaan,  and  dwelt  in  Hebron.  Lot, 
who  had  parted  from  his  uncle  Abraham,  was  taken 
prisoner  with  the  people  of  Sodom,  where  he  lived  ;  and 
Abraham  took  an  army  of  three  hundred  and  eighteen 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  21 

men,  with  whom  he  conquered  the  enemy,  and  brought 
back  Lot  and  all  his  property. 

The  people  of  tano  Sodom  and  nTiE?  Gomorrah  were 
so  wicked,  that  they  were  destroyed  by  fire  and  brim- 
stone from  Heaven.  Abraham  prayed  to  God  to  forgive 
the  people,  and  the  Lord  said,  I  will  forgive  the  avIioIg 
nation,  if  there  can  be  found  ten  righteous  men  in  the 
city.  Ten  good  men  were  however  not  to  be  found  in 
the  city,  and  so  it  was  destroyed  by  fire  and  brimstone. 
The  two  angels  that  were  sent  to  destroy  Sodom  saved 
Lot  and  his  family,  and  brought  them  out  of  the  city. 
Lot's  wife  became  a  pillar  of  salt,  because  she  would  look 
back  toward  the  city,  although  she  was  told  not  to  do  so 
by  the  angels  who  conducted  them  out  of  the  city. 

When  Abraham  was  ninety -nine  years  old,  the  Al- 
mighty told  him  that  all  the  males  of  his  house  should 
be  circumcised,  and  that  in  future  every  male  child  shall 
be  circumcised  at  eight  days  old,  and  that  the  ceremony 
should  be  a  covenant  between  God  and  his  people.  Ab- 
raham did  as  God  had  told  him^  and  God  was  well 
pleased  with  him. 

Three  angels  appeared  to  Abraham,  and  told  him  that 
his  wife  Sarah  should  have  a  son.  Sarah  did  have  a 
son,  and  Abraham  called  his  name  prrtZ"1  Isaac. 

Abraham  had  another  son,  whose  name  was  iasfcBTi 
Ishmael.  Ishmael  grew  up  to  be  a  great  man  and  the 
founder  of  a  large  nation. 

Abraham  was  a  truly  pious  and  religious  man  all  his 
lifetime.  Wherever  he  went  he  preached  the  word  of 
God,  and  taught  the  people  how  to  serve  the  true  God. 
God  blessed  Abraham,  and  he  died  at  the  good  old  age 
of  one  hundred  and  seventy  five  years,  and  his  sons 
Isaac  and  Ishmael  buried  him  in  the  cave  that  he  had 
bought  of  the  sens  of  tin  Heth. 

ISAAC. 

Isaac  was  the  son  of  Abraham.  He  was  a  good  and 
pious  man,    and  he  followed  the  good  example  of  his 


22        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

father.  God  told  Abraham  to  take  his  son  Isaac  and 
bring  him  up  for  an  offering.  Isaac  was  ready  and 
willing  to  obey  the  command  of  God.  When  Isaac  was 
laid  upon  the  altar,  ready  to  be  sacrificed,  the  angel  of 
the  Lord  called,  from  Heaven  to  Abraham,  and  said, 
uDo  not  put  forth  thy  hand  against  the  lad,  nor  do  any 
thing  to  him.  I  know  that  thoufearest  God,  and  art  ready 
to  obey  the  command  of  God."  God  was  pleased  with 
both  father  and  son,  and  the  Lord  blessed  them.  Isaac 
had  two  sons,  Jacob  and  Esau.  Jacob  was  a  pious  man, 
and  remained  at  home  at  study.  Esau  was  a  man  of 
rude  habits,  and  was  fond  of  hunting  wild  beasts  in  the 
field.  Esau  made  it  a  rule  every  day  to  bring  home  to  his 
father  some  game,  which  he  dressed  very  nicely,  and  he 
thus  became  a  favorite  with  his  father,  who  in  his  old 
days  was  blind,  and  therefore  could  not  see  Esau's  gene- 
ral conduct.  Rebecca,  however,  who  saw,  and  observed 
the  conduct  of  Jacob,  thought  that  Jacob  was  more  fitted 
to  have  the  blessing  of  the  Patriarch  Isaac  than  Esau. 
Rebecca  therefore  advised  Jacob  to  get  some  nice  meat 
prepared,  and  take  it  to  his  father,  who  would  then  give 
him  his  blessing.  Jacob  did  as  his  mother  desired  him, 
and  went  to  his  father,  who  blessed  him.  After  Jacob 
had  left  his  father,  Esau  came  in  from  the  chase  to  pro- 
cure his  father's  blessing,  and  when  he  found  that  his 
brother  Jacob  had  already  received  it,  he  was  very 
angry,  and  hated  his  brother.  He  then  said,  when  my 
father  dies  I  will  kill  my  brother.  Jacob's  mother 
hearing  this,  advised  Isaac  to  send  Jacob  to  his  uncle 
Laban  to  dwell  there  until  the  anger  of  Esau  towards 
Jacob  should  be  subdued.  Jacob  was  therefore  immedi- 
ately sent  away  to  go  to  Laban. 

Isaac  lived  to  a  good  old  age,  and  he  had  the  hap- 
piness to  see  both  Jacob  and  Esau  friends  with  each 
other.  Isaac  died  at  the  age  of  one  hundred  and 
eighty  years,  and  was  buried  by  his  two  sons  Jacob 
and  Esau. 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  23 

3Pf 


JACOB. 


Jacob  was  the  son  of  Isaac,  anil  grandson  of  Abra- 
ham. Jacob  left  his  father's  house  to  go  to  his  uncle 
Laban.  At  night,  while  on  the  road,  he  laid  himself 
down  to  sleep  and  took  some  stones  for  his  pillow.  He 
dreamed  that  he  saw  a  ladder  standing  upon  the  earth, 
which  reached  up  to  Heaven,  and  that  angels  were  going 
up  and  down  the  ladder.  And  the  Lord  said  to  Jacob 
in  his  dream,  I  am  the  Lord  God  of  Abraham  and  Isaac. 
I  will  take  care  of  thee,  wherever  thou  goest,  and  I 
will  not  leave  thee  till  I  have  done  that  which  I 
promised  thee.  When  Jacob  awoke  in  the  morning,  he 
said,  surely  the  Lord  is  in  this  place.  He  thanked  God 
for  his  kindness,  and  he  called  the  name  of  the  place 
ba  rm  Bethel,  meaning  the  House  of  God.  Jacob  then 
went  on  his  journey  and  came  to  a  well,  where  the 
shepherds  brought  their  cattle  to  drink.  At  this  time 
Rachel,  the  daughter  of  Laban,  came  with  her  father's 
flock  to  the  well,  and  Jacob  rolled  away  the  large  stone 
that  was  on  the  top  of  the  well,  and  gave  the  sheep  of 
Rachel  to  drink.  Jacob  then  went  home  with  Rachel 
to  Laban's  house.  Jacob  dwelt  with  his  uncle  Laban 
twenty  years,  and  served  him  as  a  shepherd.  Seven 
years  he  served  for  Rachel,  and  seven  years  for  Leah, 
and  six  years  for  his  sheep. 

Jacob  married  nab  Leah  and  bn-i  Rachel. 

One  day  Jacob  said  to  his  wives,  I  will  go  home  to 
my  father's  house  together  with  all  my  family  and  my 
flocks,  Jacob  did  so,  and  when  Laban  heard  it,  he  ran 
after  Jacob.  An  angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  in  a  dream 
at  night  to  Laban,  .and  said  to  him,  take  care  you  do 
not  hurt  Jacob.  Laban  and  Jacob  met  each  other,  and 
they  became  friends.  Laban  went  home  to  his  own  house, 
and  Jacob  went  on  his  travel  toward  his  father's  house. 

Jacob  now  sent  messengers  to  his  brother  Esau  with 
a  present  for  him,  in  a  very  respectful  manner.  When 
Esau  met  Jacob,  they  embraced  each  other,  and  were 


24       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

very  happy  to  see  each  other  comfortable.  Jacob  begged 
Esau  to  accept  his  present,  which,  after  being  persuad- 
ed, he  accepted,  and  then  they  parted  from  each  other. 
While  Jacob  was  on  his  journey  he  met  with  an  angel 
who  wrestled  with  him,  and  struck  him  in  the  hollow  of 
his  thigh,  for  which  reason,  we  at  this  day  do  not  eat 
the  hind  quarters  of  any  animal.  Jacob  finding  that  it 
was  an  angel  with  whom  he  had  wrestled,  he  begged  his 
blessing.  And  the  angel  said  to  Jacob,  Thy  name  shall 
no  more  be  called  Jacob,  but  blifW*  Israel,  because,  said 
the  angel,  thou  didst  contend  with  both  angels  and  men, 
and  thou  didst  prevail. 

Jacob's  children  were  therefore  called  ia^ran  l<h  the 
children  of  Israel.  On  his  way  home  Jacob's  best  be- 
hoved Rachel  died,  and  Jacob  buried  her  at  Bethlehem, 
and  erected  a  monument  over  her  grave,  which  remains 
there  to  this  day.  Jacob  then  went  to  Hebron,  where 
his  father  lived,  with  all  his  family,  and  dwelt  there. 
Jacob  went  afterward  down  to  Egypt  to  live  with  his 
son  Joseph,  who  was  ruler  over  Egypt.  Jacob  blessed 
all  his  childern  before  his  death,  which  took  place  when 
he  was  one  hundred  and  forty-seven  years  old',  and  all 
his  children  brought  him  to  Canaan,  and  there  they 
buried  him,  and  mourned  for  him  seven  days. 

JOSEPH. 

Joseph  was  the  son  of  Rachel,  Jacob's  best  beloved 
wife.  Joseph  was  the  favorite  son  of  Jacob,  who  made 
him  a  very  handsome  coat  of  many  colore. 

Joseph's  brothers  hated  him  very  much.  Joseph  was 
really  a  good-natured  lad.  He  one  day  related  to  his 
brothers  a  dream  which  he  had  had  in  the  night.  He 
thought  they  were  all  in  the  field  making  up  sheafs  of 
corn,  and  all  those  that  the  brothers  had  piled  up  bowed 
down  to  the  one  which  Joseph  had  made.  At  another 
time  he  told  them  he  dreamed  that  the  sun,  moon,  and 
eleven  stars  all  bowed  down  to  him.  Joseph's  brothers 
hated  him  the  more  on  account  of  his  dreams,  and  they 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        25 

were  very  angry  with  him,  and  said  to  him,  Dost  thou 
think  to  reign  over  us  and  become  our  master?  Jacob 
found  fault  with  Joseph,  but  nevertheless  noticed  all 
that  Joseph  had  told  him. 

Jacob's  sons  went  to  ME  Shechem  to  feed  their  flock, 
and  one  day  Jacob  sent  Joseph  to  look  after  his  brothers' 
welfare,  and  to  see  after  the  flock.    Joseph,  like  a  duti- 
ful son,  obeyed  his  father,  and  went  to  look  after  his 
brothers,  and  not  finding  them  at  Shechem,  he  went  to 
a  place  called  ^rn  Dothan.     As  soon  as  he  was  near 
them,  they  said  one  to  another,  Behold,  this  dreamer 
cometh,  let  us  kill  him  and  throw  him  into  one  of  the 
pits,  and  we  will  tell  our  father  that  some  wild  beast  has 
torn  him  into  pieces,  and  we  shall  then  see  what  will 
become  of  his   dreams.     Reuben,    the  eldest  brother, 
stopped  them,  and  said,  We  will  not  kill  him,  but  throw 
him   into   a  pit,    which  the  brothers  accordingly  did. 
While  Joseph  was  in  the  pit,  some  Midianites  passing 
by,  the  brothers  took  him  out  of  the  pit  and  sold  him 
to  these  travelers,  who  carried  him  down  to  Egypt  and 
sold  him  to  Potiphar,  an  officer  of  Pharaoh,  king  of 
Egypt.     Reuben,  who  had  gone  home  to  see  his  father, 
knew  nothing  of  what  had  happened,  and  now  on  his 
return  he  went  to  the  pit  to  look  after  Joseph,  and  when 
he  found   that  Joseph  was  not  there,  he  cried  out  in 
agony,  The  child  is  not  here ;  now,  what  shall  I  do,  or 
where  shall  I  go?  In  fact,  Reuben  wished  very  much  to 
save  Joseph  from  the  hands  of  his  cruel  brethren ;   he 
therefore  advised  them  to  put  him  into  the  pit,  so  that 
be  might  be  taken  out  when  they  were  gone. 

After  Joseph  was  sold,  the  brothers  took  the  coat  of 
many  colors  that  he  had  on,  tore  holes  in  it,  and  stained 
it  with  blood,  and  brought  it  home  to  their  father,  who, 
on  seeing  it,  rent  his  clothes  with  grief,  and  cried  and 
mourned  for  the  loss  of  his  son  Joseph. 

Joseph  was  now  in  Egypt  in  the  service  of  Potiphar, 

who  gave  to  Joseph  the  care  of  the  prison  where  the 

king's  butler  and  baker  were  placed,  becau&e  they  had 

offended  the  king.     Both  the  butler  and  the  baker  had 

3 


26        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

dreams,  which  Joseph  explained  for  them,  and  as  he 
said,  so  it  turned  out :  the  butler  was  restored  to  his 
place,  and  the  baker  was  hanged. 

After  some  time,  Pharaoh,  the  king  of  Egypt,  had 
two  dreams*  He  sent  for  all  his  wise  men,  but  none 
could  tell  him  what  his  dreams  signified.  Joseph  was 
sent  for  to  court  to  explain  the  king's  dreams.  The 
king  dreamed  that  he  saw  seven  fat  kine,  and  seven  lean 
ones,  and  then  he  saw  seven  full  and  good  ears  of  corn, 
and  seven  bad  ears  of  corn ;  the  lean  kine  swallowed  the 
fat  ones,  and  the  thin  ears  of  corn  swallowed  up  the  good 
ones,  and  still  they  were  not  any  better  in  appearance. 
Joseph  said  to  the  king  that  both  his  dreams  had  but 
one  meaning ;  that  the  Almighty  wished  to  show  to 
Pharaoh  that  there  would  be  seven  years  of  plenty,  and 
they  would  be  followed  by  seven  years  of  famine. 

Joseph  then  advised  the  king  to  save  all  the  corn  he 
possibly  could  during  the  seven  years  of  plenty,  so  that 
he  would  be  provided  for  during  the  seven  years  of 
famine. 

Pharaoh  was  so  pleased  with  the  explanation  given  by 
Joseph  of  his  dreams,  that  he  made  Joseph  the  head 
ruler  over  Egypt,  and  gave  him  the  power  of  doing 
whatever  he  thought  proper.  As  Joseph  had  foretold, 
the  seven  years  of  plenty  came,  and  after  them  the  seven 
years  of  famine.  During  the  seven  years  of  plenty, 
Joseph  saved  a  great  quantity  of  corn,  with  which  he 
supplied  the  people  during  the  famine. 

The  famine  now  reached  the  land  of  Canaan,  where 
Joseph's  father  lived.  Jacob,  hearing  that  there  was 
corn  in  Egypt,  sent  his  sons  down  there  to  buy  some. 
*  Joseph  being  the  ruler,  sold  the  corn  to  the  people  as 
they  came  to  buy.  The  moment  Joseph  saw  his  brethren 
he  knew  them,  but  they  did  not  know  him.  Joseph 
called  to  mind  his  dreams,  and  said  to  his  brethern,  Ye 
are  spies.  They  replied,  Not  so,  my  lord !  we  have  come 
here  to  buy  corn,  we  are  all  the  sons  of  one  man,  we  are 
twelve  brothers,  and  the  youngest  is  at  home  with  his 
father,    and   one    of  our  brothers    is  lost,   and  we  do 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        27 

not  know  what  has  become  of  him.  Here  Joseph 
wished  to  try  his  brothers  whether  they  were  sorry  for 
what  they  had  done  to  him.  He  therefore  confined  them 
in  the  palace  for  three  days.  On  the  third  day  he  gave 
them  plenty  of  corn,  and  sent  them  all  home,  excepting 
Simeon,  whom  he  kept  as  a  pledge,  and  made  them 
promise  that  they  would  bring  their  youngest  brother  to 
him.  The  brethren  went  home,  and  told  their  father  all 
that  had  happend  to  them.  Jacob  however  said,  my  son 
Benjamin  shall  not  go  with  you,  for  if  you  take  Benja- 
min away  from  me,  you  will  bring  down  my  old  age  in 
sorrow  to  the  grave. 

After  all  the  corn  had  been  eaten  up,  Judah  begged 
his  father  to  let  them  go,  and  buy  some  fresh  corn,  and 
at  the  same  time  to  take  Benjamin  with  them.  Judah 
then  solemnly  promised  his  father  that  he  would  take 
care,  positive^,  to  bring  back  Benjamin  to  him.  Well, 
said  Jacob,  if  it  must  be  so,  go  !  and  take  some  presents 
to  the  governor  of  the  land ;  and  Jacob  prayed,  May 
the  Almighty  grant  you  mercy  from  the  governor,  that 
he  may  restore  Simeon  unto  you,  as  also,  that  Benjamin 
may  return  with  you. 

The  brethren  did  as  their  father  had  told  them,  and 
went  down  to  Egypt;  when  they  arrived,  they  were 
invited  into  the  house  of  Joseph,  who  made  them  wel- 
come, aud  restored  unto  them  Simeon.  Joseph  first  in- 
quired after  their  father;  he  then  invited  them  to  dine 
with  him,  and  after  dinner  made  them  all  presents,  but 
unto  Benjamin  he  gave  five  times  as  much  as  the  rest. 
Joseph  ordered  one  of  his  officers  to  fill  all  the  brothers' 
sacks  with  corn,  and  to  put  his  silver  cup  into  Benja- 
min's sack. 

The  following  morning  all  the  brothers  set  out  on 
their  journey,  and  Joseph  directed  his  servant  to  go  after 
them  to  know  why  they  had  acted  so  ungrateful  as  to 
steal  his  master's  cup  ;  and  when  the  servant  overtook 
them,  and  delivered  his  master's  message,  they  cried  out, 
we  are  all  innocent;  you  may  search  all  our  sacks,  and 
whoever  has  the  cup  he  shall  be  put  to  death.     Well, 


28        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

said  the  servant,  it  shall  be  as  you  say!  every  man  then 
opened  his  sack,  and  the  cup  was  found  in' the  sack  of 
Benjamin. 

All  the  brethren  were  astonished,  and  wept  bitterly. 
They  were  surprised,  as  they  knew  that  Benjamin  had 
always  been  very  honest  and  virtuous.  They  all  went 
back  to  the  house  of  Joseph,  and  fell  at  his  feet  crying, 
it  is  true  that  the  cup  has  been  found  on  Benjamin,  but 
how  it  came  there  we  do  not  know,  yet  such  is  the  case, 
here  we  are,  all  your  slaves,  ready  to  serve.  No !  says 
Joseph,  I  do  not  think  that  right;  the  man  on  whom  the 
cup  was  found,  he  shall  be  my  slave,  and  you  shall  all 
go  home  in  peace  to  your  father's  house. 

Judah  then  approached  Joseph,  and  said  to  him,  My 
lord,  I  hope  I  shall  have  mercy  at  your  hands,  and  that 
you  will  listen  attentively  to  my  appeal.  I  have  pledged 
myself  to  my  aged  father  to  bring  my  brother  Benjamin 
home  to  him,  therefore  I  cannot  consent  to  let  Benjamin 
remain  here.  He  is  the  brother  of  him  who  is  lost  to  us, 
and  for  whom  my  father  grieves  and  mourns.  How  then 
can  I  witness  the  sorrow  of  an  aged  father,  who  so  fondly 
doats  on  his  children.  Let  me  therefore  beseech  my 
lord  to  accept  me  as  his  slave  instead  of  my  brother, 
and  let  him  go  home  to  his  father  to  console  and  comfort 
him  in  his  old  days. 

Joseph  was  so  overcome  by  this  feeling  argument  of 
Judah,  that  he  could  no  longer  refrain  from  crying,  and 
he  then  said  to  his  brethren,  1  am  Jjseph;  is  my  father 
yet  alive?  Come  near  to  me,  my  dear  brethren,  I  am 
your  brother  Joseph,  whom  ye  sold  for  a  slave.  Now  do 
not  fret  nor  be  uneasy  that  you  have  sold  me,  for  God 
hath  sent  me  here  to  provide  for  you.  Go,  make  haste, 
and  tell  my  father  all  that  you  have  seen,  and  beg  of  him 
to  come  down  to  me,  and  he  shall  live  in  Goshen  near 
to  me,  and  I  will  make  him  happy  and  comfortable, 
together  with  all  you,  my  brethren,  and  your  families. 
The  news  of  the  arrival  of  Joseph's  brethren  soon 
reached  the  ears  of  Pharaoh,  who  was  pleased  to  see 
them,  and  directed  Joseph  to  send  carriages  to  fetch  his 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       29 

father  and  all  his  family,  and  to  provide  them  with  the 
best  of  the  land.  The  brethren  then  departed  from 
Egypt,  and  went  home  to  Jacob,  and  related  to  him  all 
that  they  had  seen,  and  Jacob  said,  it  is  enough  that  my 
child  Joseph  is  yet  alive  ;  I  will  go  and  see  him  before  I 
die.  Jacob  went  down  to  Egypt,  with  all  his  family, 
seventy  in  number,  and  he  lived  there  quite  happy  until 
he  died.  After  Jacob's  death,  Joseph's  brothers  went 
in  a  body  to  him  to  beg  his  pardon,  and  hoped  he  would 
not  punish  them  for  their  treatment  toward  him.  Joseph 
kindly  replied,  be  not  afraid,  my  dear  brethren,  I  will 
not  hurt  you,  I  will  act  toward  you  as  a  loving  brother, 
I  will  provide  for  you  and  your  families,  and  I  will 
make  you  all  happy  and  comfortable.  And  Joseph  and 
his  brothers  lived  in  Egypt  very  happy  all  the  remainder 
of  their  life-time. 

Joseph  then  said  to  his  brothers,  I  have  to  request, 
that  after  my  death  you  will  reserve  my  body,  and  carry 
it  up  with  you  from  Egypt,  and  bury  it  in  the  land  which 
the  Almighty  hath  promised  to  our  forefathers. 

Joseph  lived  to  be  one  hundred  and  ten  years  old, 
and  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  a  numerous  family  of 
his  descendants. 

Joseph's  request  was  fulfilled  by  the  children  of  Israel, 
who  took  his  bones  with  them  from  Egypt  when  they 
were  delivered  from  the  bondage  and  slavery  of  the 
Egyptians. 

MOSES. 

Moses  was  the  son  of  tntt?  Amram,  of  the  tribe  of 
^  Levi. 

rrcns  Pharaoh  the  King  of  Egypt  commanded  that  all 
the  male  children  should  be  drowned.  And  when  Moses 
was  born  his  mother  hid  him  for  three  months.  And 
when  she  could  no  longer  hide  him,  she  put  him  in  a  box 
or  chest  and  laid  him  by  the  brink  of  the  river. 

The  king's  daughter  went  to  bathe,  and  found  the 


30  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 

child  in  the  river,  she  pitied  him,  took  him  home,  and 
brought  him  up  as  her  own  son. 

When  Moses  had  grown  up  to  manhood,  he  went  out 
one  day  among  his  people,  and  saw  an  Egyptian  ill- 
using  one  of  the  Hebrews.  Moses  was  hurt  to  see  his 
brother  treated  ill,  and  he  slew  the  Egyptian,  and 
buried  him  in  the  sand.  Moses  then  fled  from  Egypt 
and  went  to  the  land  of  'plfc  Midian,  where  he  dwelt 
with  ltair>.ta>  Jethro,  the  priest  of  Midian,  and  married  his 
daughter  rm&S  Zipporah.  Moses  had  two  sons  Dsna 
Gershom,  and  Wia  Eiiezer. 

While  Moses  was  feeding  the  flock  of  his  father-in- 
law,  Jethro,  God  called  to  him  out  of  the  burning  bush, 
and  said  to  him,  Go  to  Pharaoh,  king  of  Egypt,  and 
tell  him  to  let  my  people  Israel  depart  from  his  land,  in 
which  they  were  suffering  under  cruel  oppression. 
Afterward  God  appointed  Moses  the  leader  of,  and  law- 
giver to,  the  children  of  Israel. 

The  Almighty  ordered  Moses  to  build  the  pip& 
Tabernacle  in  the  wilderness,  wherein  the  priests  were 
to  pray  to  God  for  the  people.  There  were  a  great 
many  holy  things  in  the  tabernacle  made  of  gold,  silver, 
brass,  wood,  silk,  wool,  valuable  skins,  and  linen.  The 
ark  was  a  kind  of  chest  made  of  a  very  fine  sort  of  wood, 
it  was  covered  all  over  with  gold.  In  this  ark  were  kept 
the  mmi  two  tables  of  stone,  on  which  were  written  the 
Ten  Commandments  by  the  hand  of  God  himself.  The 
tfnPTpn  EHp  Holy  of  holies  was  the  most  holy  place  in 
the  tabernacle.  No  person  was  allowed  to  go  into  this 
place  but  the  high  priest,  and  that  only,  on  *nD5  trp  the 
day  of  atonement. 

The  rcttt  altar  was  the  place  where  sacrifices  were 
offered  up  to  the  Lord  every  day. 

WThen  Moses  was  gone  up  unto  the  mount  to  receive 
the  two  tables  of  stone  from  God,  he  stayed  there  longer 
than  the  people  expected  he  would  have  done;  they 
became  uneasy,  and  urged  *pna  Aaron,  the  brother  of 
Moses,  to  make  them  a  molten  calf  to  worship.  Aaron 
made  the  calf,  and  the  people  bowed  to  it,  and  served 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  31 

it.  When  Moses  came  down  from  the  mount,  and  saw 
his  people  worshipping  an  image,  he  was  so  shocked,  that 
he  threw  down  the  tables  and  broke  them;  he  then, 
by  the  direction  of  the  Almighty  punished  the  people 
for  their  sins,  because  the  Lord  had  told  them  on  Mount 
Sinai,  "Thou  shalt  not  bow  down  to  any  imaged  Moses 
then  prayed  to  God  to  pardon  the  people  for  what  they 
dad  been  guilty  of,  which  the  Almighty  promised  he 
would  do  ;  at  the  same  time  he  told  Moses  to  go  up  to 
the  mount  a  second  time,  there  to  receive  again  two 
tables  of  stone  instead  of  those  wrhich  he  had  broken. 

*pn«  Aaron,  the  brother  of  Moses,  was  made  the  high 
priest  over  Israel,  by  the  command  of  the  Lord  to  Moses. 
The  sons  of  Aaron  were  also  priests,  and  served  in  the 
holy  Tabernacle.  Aaron  was  not  allowed  to  enter  the 
promised  land  in  consequence  of  the  rebellion  at  the 
waters  of  Meribah.  God  ordered  Aaron  to  go  up  to  the 
Mount  Hor,  there  to  let  Moses  strip  him  of  his  garments, 
and  put  them  on  Eleazar,  his  son.  Moses  did  as  the 
Lord  had  told  him,  and  Aaron  died  there  on  the  top  of 
the  mount,  and  the  children  of  Israel  mourned  for  him 
thirty  days. 

Moses  wTas  not  allowed  to  enter  the  promised  land ; 
the  Almighty  however  showed  the  land  to '  Moses  from 
the  top  of  the  mount  Pisgah ;  and  Moses,  the  servant  of 
the  Lord,  died  there  in  the  land  of  Moab,  aged  one 
hundred  and  twenty  years  ;  he  was  buried,  in  a  valley, 
but  no  man  knoweth  of  his  grave  unto  this  day.  The 
children  of  Israel  mourned  for  Moses  thirty  days.  After 
the  death  of  Moses,  Joshua,  the  son  of  Nun,  became  the 
leader  of  Israel. 

JOSHUA. 

After  the  death  of  Moses  God  appointed  Joshua  to 
be  the  leader  of  Israel,  and  to  bring  them  into  the  prom- 
ised land,  the  land  of  Canaan.  Joshua  was  a  very  good 
man. 

Joshua  prayed  to  God  to  lengthen  the  day,  so  that  he 


32       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

might  gain  a  victory  over  his  enemies,  and  God  was 
pleased  to  allow  that  to  take  place,  and  Joshua  won  the 
battle.  When  Joshua  had  settled  the  children  of  Israel 
in  the  land  of  Canaan,  he  set  up  the  tabernacle  in 
Shiloh,  which  belonged  to  the  tribe  of  Ephraim,  some 
distance  from  d^ETY*  Jerusalem,  and  there  the  taber- 
nacle remained  for  three  hundred  years,  till  the  days  of 
Samuel,  the  prophet. 

Joshua  called  all  the  people  together  before  his 
death,  and  made  a  covenant  with  them,  that  they  should 
continue  to  serve  the  Lord,  their  God,  all  their  lifetime. 
Joshua  lived  to  a  good  old  age,  beloved  by  God  and 
all  his  people.  He  was  one  hundred  and  ten  years  old 
when  he  died. 

After  the  death  of  Joshua  Israel  was  ruled  by  judges. 

Ja^rtt  Othniel,  the  son  of  Kenaz,  judged  Israel,  after 
the  death  of  Joshua,  during  forty  years.  He  delivered 
Israel  from  the  hands  of  the  king  of  Mesopotania,  to 
whom  they  had  been  subjected  for  eight  years,  as  a 
punishment  for  their  having  served  idols. 

Tina  Ehud  was  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  he  judged 
or  ruled  Israel  for  eight  years,  he  delivered  his  people 
from  the  hands  of  Eglon,  king  of  Moab,  who  had  op- 
pressed them  very  much. 

*tt&lD  Shamgar,  the  son  of  Anath,  judged  Israel  during 
the  time  of  Ehud.  He  delivered  Israel  from  the  hands 
of  the  Philistines  who  oppressed  them,  and  he  slew  of  the 
Philistines  six  hundred  men  with  an  ox  goad. 

nTtn  Deborah,  the  prophetess,  and  p*p  Barak,  the  son 
of  Abinoam,  judged  Israel  after  the  death  of  Ehud,  for 
forty  years.  They  delivered  Israel  from  the  hands  of 
the  cruel  Jaban,  king  of  Canaan. 

\i$1l  Gideon  was  the  son  of  Joash.  He  was  called 
by  an  angel  of  God  to  deliver  Israel  from  the  hands  of 
the  wicked  Midianites  who  oppressed  them.  God  gave 
Gideon  a  sign  that  he  would  help  him.  He  made  a 
fleece  of  wool  wet,  when  the  ground  all  round  it  was  dry, 
and  again,  he  made  a  fleece  of  wool  dry  when  the  ground 
was  wet.     Gideon  judged  Israel  forty  years. 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  S3 

^ifc^M*  Abimelech,  the  son  of  Gideon,  judged  Israel 
for  three  years.  He  slew  seventy  of  his  brethren,  and 
God  punished  him  for  so  doing,  for  when  he  took  the 
city  of  Thebez,  a  woman  cast  a  piece  of  a  mill  stone 
upon  his  head,  and  killed  him. 

3>bm  Tolah,  the  son  of  Puah,  judged  Israel  after  the 
death  of  Abimelech,  during  twenty  and  three  years. 

^fcO  Jair,  the  Gileadite,  judged  Israel  after  Tolah, 
twenty  and  two  years.  He  had  thirty  sons,  and  they 
had  thirty  cities  in  the  land  of  Gilead. 

htiB^  Jephthah  was  a  mighty  man  of  valor.  He 
judged  Israel  six  years.  He  delivered  Israel  from  the 
power  of  the  Ammonites.  When  Jephthah  went  to  war 
with  the  people  of  Ammon,  he  made  a  vow,  that  if  God 
would  deliver  the  people  into  his  hands,  he  would  devote 
to  his  service  whatever  should  come  first  out  of  his  house 
to  meet  him  on  his  return  home.  The  Lord  delivered 
the  people  into  Jephthah's  hands,  and  when  having  gained 
the  victory,  he  returned  home ;  his  daughter  came  out 
to  meet  him,  and  she  said  to  her  father,  My  father,  if 
thou  hast  made  a  vow  unto  the  Lord,  do  unto  me  as 
thou  hast  promised,  and  she  went  away  from  her  friends, 
and  became  devoted  to  the  service  of  God. 

'pzsj*  Ibzan  judged  Israel  seven  years.  He  had  thirty 
sons  and  thirty  daughters. 

yib^a  Elon,  the  Zebulonite,  judged  Israel,  after  Ibzan, 
ten  years. 

ynns  Abdon,  the  son  of  Hillel,  judged  Israel  eight 
years.     He  had  forty  sons  and  thirty  nephews. 

■yiEfcttJ  Samson  was  the  son  of  Manoah,  and  he  de- 
livered Israel  from  the  hands  of  the  Philistines.  Sam- 
son was  the  strongest  man.  He  tore  a  lion  in  two.  He 
broke  all  the  cords  with  which  he  was  bound.  He  slew 
a  thousand  of  the  Philistines  with  the  jawbone  of  an  ass, 
and  he  carried  away  upon  his  back  the  gates  and  posts 
of  the  city  of  Gaza.  The  Philistines,  jealous  of  his 
strength,  cut  off  all  his  hair  and  put  out  his  eyes,  and 
mocked  at  him ;  and  one  day  they  were  all  gathered 
together  in  their  house  'to  worship  their  idol,  and  they 


34        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

sent  for  Samson  out  of  the  prison  in  which  they  had 
placed  him.  When  he  came  to  the  house,  he  laid  hold 
of  the  pillars  by  which  it  was  supported,  and  pulled  the 
whole  of  it  down  to  the  ground,  and  killed  many 
thousands  of  the  Philistines,  and  he  died  among  them. 

After  the  death  of  Samson,  ^  Eli,  the  High  Priest, 
judged  Israel  during  forty  years ;  but  he  was  not  a 
very  good  judge,  and  was  therefore  not  in  favor  with 
the  Almighty. 

nn 

RUTH. 

Ruth  was  a  Moabitess,  who  married  Mahlon,  an 
Israelite,  the  son  of  %3J  Noami.  Noami  went  with -her 
family  to  live  in  the  land  of  Moab,  because  of  a  famine 
which  was  in  the  land  of  Israel,  in  the  days  of  the 
judges.  Noaini's  husband  and  her  two  sons  died  in  the 
land  of  Moab. 

Noami  then  returned  to  the  land  of  Israel,  and  Ruth, 
her  daughter-in-law,  accompanied  her.  Noami  however 
wished  her  to  return  to  her  own  country.  This  she 
refused  to  do,  saying,  intreat  me  not  to  leave  thee,  or 
to  return  from  following  thee :  for  whither  thou  goest,  I 
will  go,  and  where  thou  lodgest,  1  will  lodge :  thy  people 
shall  be  my  people,  and  thy  God,  my  God. 

Where  thou  &>-st,  I  will  die,  and  there  will  I  be 
buried ;  the  Lord  do  so  to  me,  and  more  also,  if  aught 
but  death  part  thee  and  me.  When  Noami  saw  that 
Ruth  was  steadfastly  minded  to  go  with  her,  then  she 
left  off  speaking  to  her. 

So  they  went  to  Bethlehem.  After  a  time  T2>m  Boaz, 
a  very  rich  man,  who  was  a  near  relation  to  Ruth's 
deceased  husband,  married  her  ;  and  thus  Ruth  became 
the  great- grandmother  of  David,  who  afterward  became 
king  in  Israel 

SAMUEL. 

Samuel   was  the  son  of  nan  Hannah,  a  very  pious 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        35 

woman,  who  took  Samuel,  when  yet  a  child,  to  Eli,  the 
prophet,  in  the  house  of  God.  Samuel  was  brought  up 
in  the  house  of  God,  at  Shiloh,  from  his  infancy  till  he 
became  a  man.  He  ministered  in  the  service  of  the 
tabernacle  the  same  as  the  rest  of  the  Levites.  Samuel 
delivered  Israel  from  the  hands  of  the  Philistines.  He 
offered  a  burnt-offering  unto  the  Lord,  and  prayed  unto 
him,  and  the  Lord  sent  thunder  from  heaven  which 
destroyed  the  Philistines.  Samuel  went  through  the 
land  every  year.  He  judged  Israel  with  great  justice 
and  honor  for  many  years. 

When  Samuel  became  old,  the  people  asked  him  to 
appoint  a  king  to  rule  over  them,  like  the  rest  of  the 
nations.  Samuel  advised  the  people  not  to  have  a  king, 
as  the  Lord  God  of  the  whole  world  was  their  king  and 
their  ruler.  The  people  however  would  not  take  Sa- 
muel's advice,  but  said  to  him,  we  will  have  a  king 
who  shall  rule  over  us.  And  Samuel,  by  direction  of 
the  Almighty,  selected  Saul,  and  appointed  him  to  be 
king  over  the  people. 


bmt 


SAUL. 

Saul  was  the  first  king  in  Israel.  Saul  was  a  very 
tall  young  man.  He  was  the  son  of  Kish,  of  the  tribe 
of  Benjamin.  Saul  was  sent  by  his  father  to  look  after 
some  asses  that  were  lost,  and  Saul  met  Samuel,  the 
prophet,  and  he  asked  him  about  them.  Samuel  took 
Saul  aside  and  made  him  King  of  Israel  by  the  command 
of  God.  Saul  was  a  good  king  for  a  short  time,  but 
afterward  he  did  not  obey  the  word  of  God,  and  the 
Lord  took  the  kingdom  from  him  and  gave  it  to  David. 

•   T 

DAVID. 

David  was  the  youngest  son  of  Jesse,  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah.  He  was  bred  up  to  keep  his  father's  flock. 
While  he  was  a  shepherd,  he  killed  a  lion  and  a  bear 


36        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

that  came  to  steal  the  sheep.  The  Lord  sent  Samuel  to 
make  David  king  over  his  people  instead  of  Saul. 

When  David  was  a  very  young  man,  there  was  a  war 
between  the  people  of  Israel  and  the  Philistines,  and 
among  the  Philistines  was  a  great  giant  named  Goliath 
of  Gath,  who  frightened  the  Israelites  very  much  and 
defied  the  Almighty;  but  David,  zealous  for  his  God, 
and  trusting  in  his  mercy,  went  out  to  fight  the  great 
giant  and  killed  him,  being  armed  only  with  a  sling  and 
a  stone,  and  then  cut  off  his  head,  and  showed  it  to  all 
the  people. 

David  reigned  in  vnsn  Hebron  seven  years  and  a 
half.  And  then  all  Israel  came  to  him,  owned  him  as 
their  king,  and  took  him  up  to  Jerusalem.  David  wished 
to  build  a  house  for  the  worship  of  God,  but  the  Lord 
told  him  that  his  hands  had  shed  too  much  blood,  and 
therefore  he  was  not  fit  for  so  holy  a  purpose.  David 
ruled  over  his  people  with  justice  and  honor,  and  loved 
God  with  all  his  heart.  He  reigned  over  Israel  for  forty 
years,  and  died  on  his  bed  in  peace  with  every  one  of 
his  people. 

David  was  a  great  musician,  warrior  and  poet.  He 
wrote  the  Book  of  Psalms ;  the  Psalms  are  the  finest 
pieces  of  poetry  ever  written  by  man. 

David,  before  his  death,  collected  a  great  quantity 
of  gold  and  silver,  and  jewels,  and  other  things  useful 
for  the  erection  of  the  temple,  and  which  he  directed  his 
son  Solomon  to  build.  Solomon  became  king  after  the 
death  of  his  father  David. 


SOLOMON. 

Solomon  was  the  son  of  King  David.  When  David 
was  an  old  man,  he  made  Solomon,  his  son,  king  in  his 
stead.  Solomon  was  the  wisest  man  that  ever  lived, 
and  one  of  the  greatest  of  kings. 

In  Gibeon  the  Lord  appeared  to  Solomon  in  a  dream 
by  night,  and  God  said  to  him,  Ask  what  I  shall  give 


A    CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        37 

thee.  And  Solomon  said,  O  Lord,  my  God,  thou  hast 
made  thy  servant  king  over  thy  people  instead  of  David, 
my  father,  give  therefore,  I  pray  thee,  unto  thy  servant, 
an  understanding  heart,  that  I  may  know  how  to  judge 
thy  people  Israel. 

And  God  was  pleased  with  Solomon,  and  said  to  him, 
Because  thou  hast  not  asked  for  riches  or  long  life,  but 
thou  hast  asked  for  wisdom,  I  have  made  thee  the  wisest 
man  that  ever  was  or  ever  will  be.  I  have  also  given 
thee  riches  and  honor,  so  that  thou  shalt  be  the  greatest 
king  in  thy  days. 

Solomon  built  the  tznpfcn  ma  Holy  Temple  in  Jeru- 
salem. It  was  the  most  beautiful  building  ever  seen. 
It  had  a  great  many  vessels  of  gold  and  silver,  and 
thousands  of  the  &*l5  Levites,  who  sang  praises  in  it 
every  day.  The  temple  was  built  on  Mount  Moriah,  to 
which  Abraham,  our  forefather,  brought  his  son  Isaac  for 
an  offering  to  the  Lord.  When  Solomon  had  finished 
the  temple  he  called  all  the  people  together,  and  brought 
there  the  ark  of  God,  and  offered  up  sacrifices.  He 
prayed  to  God  to  bless  the  house  he  had  built,  and  to 
hear  the  prayers  of  those  who  should  come  there  to  pray 
to  him,  and  supplicate  his  goodness.  He  sang  praises  in 
the  house,  and  held  a  feast  seven  days.  The  temple 
was  filled  with  a  cloud  of  the  glory  of  God,  who  was 
pleased  with  Solomon.  And  God  told  him  in  a  dream  by 
night,  that  he  had  heard  his  prayers,  and  that  he  chose 
the  temple  he  had  built,  for  his  glory  to  dwell  there. 

God  blessed  the  reign  of  Solomon,  and  his  fame  was 
great  among  all  nations.  All  the  kings  and  princes 
who  knew  him  asked  his  friendship,  and  gave  him  their 
assistance,  and  made  him  very  handsome  presents. 

During  the  reign  of  King  Solomon  our  nation  was 
truly  happy;  every  man  lived,  as  the  Bible  tells  us, 
u under  his  vine,  and  under  his  fig  tree,  all  the  days  of 
Solomon." 

d*pn  Hiram,  King  of  Tyre,  sent  wood  to  King  Solo- 
mon to  build  the  temple.     He  also  sent  him  workmen 
and  laborers  to  help  him  with  the  work. 
4 


38        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Solomon  reigned  over  all  Israel  forty  years,  admired, 
respected,  and  beloved  by  all  his  people. 

Solomon  wrote  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  Song  of  Songs, 
and  Ecclesiastes,  or,  the  Preacher. 

warn  Rehoboam  was  the  son  of  Solomon.  He  was  a 
very  foolish  young  prince.  He  used  his  subjects  very 
ill.  He  laid  very  heavy  taxes  upon  them,  and  they 
were  dissatisfied,  and  rebelled.  This  made  ten  tribes 
of  Israel  select  Jeroboam,  an  officer  of  Solomon,  and 
make  him  king  over  them.  The  tribes  of  Judah  and 
Benjamin  remained  true  to  Rehoboam.  And  from  the 
time  of  this  separation,  the  nation  was  divided  into  two 
kingdoms ;  the  one  called  the  Kingdom  of  Israel,  and 
the  other  the  Kingdom  of  Judah.  The  tribes  of  Judah 
and  Benjamin  formed  the  Kingdom  of  Judah  under 
Rehoboam.  The  other  ten  tribes  formed  the  Kingdom 
of  Israel,  which  was  governed  by  Jeroboam.. 

There  were  nineteen  kings  who  reigned  T>ver  the 
Kingdom  of  Israel,,  after  it  had  been  divided  from  the 
Kingdom  of  Judah ;  but  none  of  those  kings  were  good. 

bvnvn  vbo 

"   t  :    •      •• :  - 
KINGS    OF    ISRAEL. 

fcWP  Jeroboam  was  a  proud  and  wicked  king.  He 
made  the  people  worship  two  golden  calves,  instead  of 
the  Almighty  God.  One  image  he  set  up  in  the  city 
of  Dan,  and  the  other  in  Bethel. 

One  day  while  Jeroboam  was  offering  up  to  the  calf 
of  Bethel,  God  sent  a  prophet  to  tell  him  that  the  altar 
would  be  destroyed.  Jereboam  put  out  his  hand  to  lay 
hold  of  the  prophet,  but  God  caused  the  hand  of  Jero- 
boam to  wither  and  dry  up,  and  the  altar  was  broken  in 
pieces.  Jeroboam  then  begged  the  prophet  to  pray  for 
him  to  God,  and  the  prophet  did  so,  and  the  king's  hand 
was  cured.  Jeroboam  built  the  city  called  Samaria. 
Jeroboam  reigned  over  Israel  twenty  and  two  years,  and 
at  his  death,  .Nadab,  his  son,   succeeded  him  to   the 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       39 

throne.    The  prophet  who  came  to  Jeroboam  was  named 
mna  Ahijah. 

m3  Nadab,  the  son  of  Jeroboam,  reigned  over  Israel 
two  years.  He  was  a  wicked  king,  and  God  punished 
him.  He  was  killed  by  one  of  his  household,  named 
Baasha,  who  reigned  in  his  stead. 

aron  Baasha  reigned  over  Israel  twenty  and  four 
years.  He  followed  the  ways  of  Jeroboam,  and  was 
very  wicked,  and  the  Almighty  said,  Him  that  dieth  of 
Baasha  in  the  city  the  dogs  shall  eat,  and  him  that  dieth 
in  the  fields  shall  the  fowls  of  the  air  eat. 

nj»  Elah,  the  son  of  Baasha  was  king  in  Israel  two 
years.  While  Elah  was  drinking  in  the  house  of  Arza, 
his  Stewart,  in  Tirzah,  Zimri,  the  servant  of  Elah, 
killed  him,  and  reigned  in  his  stead. 

When  the  people  heard  that  Zimri  had  slain  their 
King  Elah,  and  had  made  himself  king,  then  all  Israel 
took  Omri,*the  captain  of  the  host,  and  made  them  their 
king. 

^£2  Omri  then  besieged  the  city  of  Tirzah,  and 
Zimri,  finding  no  means  of  escape,  burnt  himself  and 
the  palace  together.  Thus  Zimri  died,  after  a  short 
reign  of  only  seven  days.  Omri  reigned  over  Israel 
twelve  years,  but  he  was  a  very  wicked  king.  He  made 
Samaria  the  royal  city. 

nana  Ahab  was  the  son  of  Omri.  He  reigned  over 
Israel  in  Samaria  twenty  and  two  years.  Ahab,  like 
his  father,  was  a  wicked  king,  and  wrorse  than  any  before 
him.  His  queen,  whose  name  was  Jezebel,  hated  the 
Lord  and  worshipped  idols.  God  sent  the  prophet  Elijah 
to  warn  Ahab,  and  to  try  and  make  him  repent  and 
amend  his  ways,  but  without  effect.  He  continued  to 
be  wicked,  and  God  sent  a  famine  in  the  land  for  three 
years,  during  which  time,  there  was  neither  dew  nor 
rain  on  the  earth,  as  God  had  sent  to  the  prophet  Elijah 
to  tell  the  King  Ahab.  Ahab  was  killed  in  battle,  and 
his  wicked  queen  Jezebel  was  thrown  out  of  a  window 
and  killed  on  the  spot,  and  the  dogs  devoured  her  body. 
immi*  Ahaziah,  the  son  of  Ahab,  reigned  over  Israel 


40        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

two  years.  He  was  a  very  wicked  king.  When  he  was 
sick  in  bed,  he  sent  messengers  to  the  idol  he  worshipped, 
to  know  whether  he  should  recover.  Elijah,  the  prophet, 
reproved  him  for  it,  and  the  king  sent  officers  to  take 
Elijah,  the  prophet,  prisoner.  Elijah  then  brought  down 
fire  from  Heaven,  which  burned  the  two  messengers 
with  their  troops. 

Ahaziah  died  in  this  sickness  as  foretold  by  the  pro- 
phet Elijah. 

dTim  Jehoram,  the  son  of  Ahab,  and  brother  of 
Ahaziah,  reigned  in  Israel  twelve  years.  He  acted 
wickedly  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  but  was  not  quite  so 
wicked  as  his  father  and  mother,  for  he  put  away  the 
idol  that  his  father  had  made. 

Jehoram  was  killed  by  an  arrow  which  was  shot  at 
him  by  Jehu,  a  captain,  who  was  annointed  king  by  the 
Almighty's  direction. 

aim  Jehu  was  a  captain  who  was  made  king  over 
Israel  by  the  prophet,  whom  God  had  sent  for  that 
purpose.  He  destroyed  the  worship  of  Baal.  At  first 
Jehu  was  a  good  king,  but  after  some  time  he  followed 
the  wicked  example  set  by  Jeroboam,  the  first  king  of 
Israel.  Jehu  died  after  having  reigned  in  Israel  twenty 
and  eight  years. 

main*1  Jehoahaz,  the  son  of  Jehu,  reigned  over  Israel 
seventeen  years.  He  walked  in  the  wicked  ways  of 
Jeroboam,  who  made  Israel  to  sin. 

When  Israel  was  oppressed  by  the  king  of  Syria, 
Jehoahaz  prayed  to  God  to  relieve  them,  and  God  heard 
his  prayers,  and  delivered  his  people  out  of  the  hands 
of  the  Syrians. 

©awfi  Jehoash,  the  son  of  Jehoahaz,  reigned  over 
Israel  sixteen  years.  Jehoash  went  to  war  with  Amaziah, 
king  of  Judah,  and  took  him  prisoner.  He  broke  down 
the  wall  of  Jerusalem,  and  took  away  with  him  out  of 
the  house  of  God  all  the  vessels  of  gold  and  silver,  and 
brought  them  home  to  his  own  palace. 

tD^nn"1  Jeroboam  the  Second,  son  of  Jehoash,  reigned 
over  Israel  forty  and  one  years.     Jeroboam  recovered 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  41 

Damascus  and  Hamath,  which  belonged  to  Judah,  and 
which  had  formerly  belonged  to  Israel,  and  after  his 
death  Zachariah,  his  son,  reigned  in  his  stead, 

im^dT  Zachariah,  the  son  of  Jeroboam  the  Second, 
reigned  in  Samaria  over  Israel  six  months.  He  was  a 
wicked  king,  and  was  slain  by  Shallum,  the  son  of  Jabesh, 
in  the  presence  of  all  the  people. 

uibiD  Shallum,  the  son  of  Jabesh,  reigned  one  month. 
Menahem,  the  son  of  Gadi,  came  to  Samaria  and  smote 
Shallum  and  slew  him,  and  sat  on  the  throne  in  his 
stead. 

brttfc  Menahem  was  king  over  Israel  in  Samaria  ten 
years.  This  king  followed  the  wicked  deeds  of  the  kings 
before  him.  Pul,  the  king  of  Assyria,  came  against  the 
land,  and  Menahem  gave  him  a  thousand  talents  of 
silver,  and  the  king  of  Assyria  turned  back,  and  did  no 
harm  to  the  land.  Menahem  died,  and  his  son  Pekaiah 
became  king. 

impB  Pekaiah,  the  son  of  Menahem,  reigned  over 
Israel  two  years.  Pekah,  one  of  his  captains,  killed  him 
in  the  palace,  and  reigned  in  his  stead. 

npB  Pekah,  the  son  of  Remaliah,  reigned  in  Israel 
twenty  years.  In  his  days  the  king  of  Assyria  took 
many  cities,  and  carried  away  many  of  the  people  of 
Assyria,  and  made  prisoners  of  them. 

Hosheah,  the  son  of  Eli,  conspired  against  the  king 
of  Israel,  and  slew  him,  and  then  reigned  in  his  stead. 

9WTI  Hosheah  reigned  over  Israel  in  Samaria  nine 
years.  He  was  the  last  king  of  Israel.  Jn  his  days 
Shalmanesser,  king  of  Assyria,  took  the  city  Samaria, 
put  Hosheah,  the  king,  into  prison,  and  carried  away  a 
great  number  of  Israel  into  distant  countries,  from  which 
they  have  never  returned  to  this  day.  When  the  people 
of  Israel  removed  from  Samaria  other  nations  were 
placed  there,  wTho  worshipped  idols,  therefore  the  Al- 
mighty sent  lions  among  them  to  destroy  them.  The 
king  of  Assyria  then  sent  a  priest  from  among  Israel  to 
teach  the  people  the  worship  of  God,  and  then  these 
nations  feared  God ;  but  still  they  served  idols. 


42         A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

After  many  years  the  people  forsook  their  idols  and 
followed  the  religion  of  Moses ;  they  received  the  five 
books  of  Moses,  and  they  built  a  temple  of  their  own  on 
Mount  Gerizim. 

rrrirn  ^d 

t      :      ••  :  - 

KINGS    OF   JUDAH. 

There  were  twenty  kings  and  rulers  who  reigned  over 
the  kingdom  of  Judah.  The  kings  of  Judah  were  not 
so  wicked  as  the  kings  of  Israel.  A  few  of  them  were 
very  pious  and  religious,  some  were  very  wicked,  and 
others  of  a  mixed  character. 

fcsnm  Rehoboam,  the  son  of  Solomon,  of  whom  pre- 
vious mention  has  been  made,  was  the  first  king  of  Judah. 
During  his  reign  there  were  many  wars  between  Israel 
and  Judah.  The  people  were  so  wicked  that  God  was 
very  angry,  and  in  the  fifth  year  of  king  Rehoboam, 
Shishak,  king  of  Egypt,  came  to  Jerusalem,  and  he  took 
away  the  treasures  of  the  holy  temple,  and  of  the  king's 
house.  He  took  away  also  all  the  shields  of  gold  which 
Solomon  had  made.  Rehoboam  reigned  in  Judah  at 
Jerusalem  seventeen  years,  and  his  son  Abijam  reigned 
in  his  stead. 

tnna  Abijam,  the  son  of  Rehoboam,  reigned  over  Judah 
three  years.  When  Jeroboam,  the  first  king  in  Israel, 
after  the  separation  of  the  two  kingdoms,  led  the  people 
of  Israel  to  war  against  Judah,  Abijam  reproved  them 
for  having  departed  from  the  worship  of  the  true  God. 
Jeroboam  would  not  listen,  but  led  the  people  to  battle. 
Abijam  and  the  people  of  Judah  prayed  to  the  Lord, 
and  he  delivered  the  people  of  Israel  into  their  hands, 
and  Judah  slew  five  hundred  thousand  men  of  Israel. 
When  Abijam  died,  he  was  buried  in  the  city  of  David, 
and  Asa,  his  son,  reigned  in  his  stead. 

acic  Asa,  the  son  of  Abijam,  reigned  forty  and  one 
years  over  Judah  in  Jerusalem.  Asa  did  that  which  was 
right  in  the  eyes  of  the  Lord,  and  removed  all  the  idols 
that  the  people  worshipped.  God  was  pleased  with  Asa, 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  43 

and  he  delivered  Zera,  the  Ethiopian,  into  his  hands, 
who  came  against  him  with  ten  hundred  thousand  men. 

In  his  old  age  Asa  displeased  God,  in  not  putting 
proper  trust  in  him,  for  he  gave  some  of  the  treasures 
out  of  the  house  of  God  to  the  king  of  Syria,  to  help 
him  to  fight  against  Basha,  the  king  of  Israel.  The 
prophet  Tjan  Hanani,  who  lived  in  those  days,  reproved 
Asa  for  doing  so,  and  Asa  was  very  angry  with  the  pro- 
phet, and  put  him  into  prison  for  it.  Asa  died  of  a 
disease  in  his  feet,  supposed  to  be  the  gout,  and  his  son, 
Jehoshaphat,  reigned  in  his  stead. 

fc&EVn  Jehoshaphat,  the  son  of  Asa,  reigned  in  Jeru- 
salem over  Judah  twenty  and  five  years.  He  was  a  very 
good  and  pious  king.  He  followed  the  good  conduct  of 
king  David,  and  God  was  with  him.  He  placed  Levites 
and  priests  in  all  the  cities  of  Judah  to  teach  the  people 
the  law  of  God,  and  he  placed  judges  in  the  land,  and 
bid  them  do  justice  to  all  parties  in  every  case  that 
should  be  brought  before  them.  God  gave  him  great 
riches  and  honor,  and  all  nations  feared  the  Lord,  and 
did  not  make  war  upon  Judah  for  many  years.  Jeho- 
shaphat, howTever,  offended  God  by  joining  the  wicked 
king  Ahab  in  a  battle  against  the  Syrians. 

When  Ammon  and  Moab  came  against  Jehoshaphat 
to  war,  he  prayed  to  God,  and  proclaimed  a  fast  through- 
out the  land  ;  he  prayed  earnestly  to  the  Lord,  and  when 
he  went  to  battle,  he  set  singers  before  the  army  to  sing 
praises  to  the  Lord.  When  the  people  began  to  sing  and 
pray  to  God,  their  enemies  fell  one  upon  another  till 
they  were  all  slain.  He  lived  in  peace  wTith  the  surround- 
ing nations.  Jehoram,  his  son,  came  to  the  throne  at 
his  father's  death. 

dTir?1  Jehoram,  the  son  of  Jehoshaphat,  reigned  over 
Judah  in  Jerusalem  eight  years.  He  was  by  no  means 
like  his  father.  He  was  a  very  wicked  king.  He 
followed  the  example  of  Ahab,  the  wicked  king  of  Israel* 
He  slew  all  his  brothers,  and  he  married  the  daughter 
of  Ahab,  wTho  encouraged  him  in  his  wickedness.  God 
was  very  angry  with  Jehoram,  and  he  sent  against  him 


44       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

the  Philistines  and  the  Arabians,  who  carried  away  all 
the  riches  that  were  found  in  the  king's  house.  They 
took  away  his  wife  and  his  sons,  and  left  him  only  his 
youngest  son.  The  Lord  then  smote  him  with  a  disease 
in  his  bowels,  of  which  he  died ;  and  Ahaziah,  his 
youngest  son,  was  made  king  in  his  stead. 

limna  Ahaziah,  the  son  of  Jehoram,  reigned  over 
Judah  in  Jerusalem  one  year.  He  followed  the  evil 
ways  of  the  house  of  Ahab,  and  he  went  out  with  Je- 
horam, king  of  Israel,  against  Jehu,  and  he  was  slain 
by  Jehu. 

When  Athaliah,  the  mother  of  Ahaziah,  saw  that  her 
son  was  dead,  she  destroyed  all  the  seed  royal  of  the 
house  of  Judah,  except  Joash,  the  son  of  Ahaziah,  an 
infant  of  a  year  old,  who  was  hid  in  the  temple,  and 
there  he  remained  for  six  years.  After  the  death  of 
Ahaziah,  Athaliah,  his  mother,  ascended  the  throne. 
She  practised  all  the  wickedness  of  the  house  of  Ahab. 

STnm  Jehoiada,  the  Hight  Priest,  caused  the  people 
to  revolt  against  the  wicked  queen,  and  placed  Joash, 
the  son  of  Ahaziah,  on  the  throne,  when  be  was  but  seven 
years  old.  He  then  ordered  the  guards  to  slay  Athaliah, 
which  they  did;  and  then  he  destroyed  all  the  wor- 
shippers of  the  idols. 

©BW  Jehoash,  the  son  of  Ahaziah,  reigned  over  Ju- 
dah in  Jerusalem  forty  years.  All  the  days  of  Jehoia- 
da, the  High  Priest,  Joash  did  right  in  the  sight  of  God. 
He  repaired  the  temple  and  all  its  vessels,  and  restored 
the  worship  of  God. 

After  the  death  of  Jehoiada,  Joash  served  idols,  and 
he  slew  Zechariah,  the  son  of  Jehoiada,  because  he  re- 
proved the  people  for  serving  idols.  God  punished  him, 
and  sent  an  army  of  the  Syrians  against  him,  who 
plundered  the  country,  and  slew  many  of  the  people. 
Joash  was  slain  by  his  own  servants  in  his  bed,  and  his 
son  Amaziah  reigned  in  his  stead. 

imsfca  Amaziah,  the  son  of  Joash,  reigned  in  Jerusa- 
lem over  Judah  twenty  and  nine  years.  When  be  began 
to  reign  he  seemed  to  be  righteous,  and  to  hearken  to 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        45 

the  voice  of  God,  and  of  his  prophets  ;  but  when  he  went 
to  war  with  the  Edomites,  and  gained  the  battle,  he  was 
proud,  and  served  idols.  He  then  challenged  the  king 
of  Israel  to  battle,  and  was  overcome.  He  was  afterward 
slain  by  some  of  his  own  people,  who  had  conspired 
against  him,  and  sent  after  him  to  a  place  called  Lachish. 

mw  Azariah,  the  son  of  Amaziah,  was  made  king 
instead  of  his  father.  He  was  only  sixteen  years  of 
age  when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he  reigned  fifty  and 
two  years  in  Jerusalem.  During  the  days  of  Zachariah, 
a  prophet,  Azariah,  walked  in  the  ways  of  God,  and  was 
a  good  king,  and  God  prospered  him  in  all  his  doings, 
and  made  him  a  great  name.  Azariah,  also  called 
VPTO  Uzziah,  afterward  became  proud,  and  he  burnt 
incense  in  the  Temple  of  the  Lord;  the  priests  told 
him  of  his  error,  but  he  paid  no  attention  to  them,  and 
God  punished  him  with  leprosy  until  his  death.  At  his 
death  his  son  Jotham  reigned  in  his  stead. 

titm  Jotham,  the  son  of  Uzziah,  reigned  over  Judah 
in  Jerusalem  sixteen  years.  He  was  a  good  king,  and 
God  blessed  his  reign ;  and  he  made  the  children  of 
Ammon  pay  a  tribute  to  him.  Jotham  was  buried  in 
the  city  of  David,  and  Ahaz,  his  son,  reigned  in  his 
stead. 

tft»  Ahaz,  the  son  of  Jotham,  reigned  sixteen  years  in 
Jerusalem.  He  was  not  a  good  king.  He  did  not  follow 
the  good  advice  and  actions  of  his  father.  He  wor- 
shipped idols,  and  God  punished  him,  and  sent  both  the 
king  ot  Syria  and  the  king  of  Israel  against  him ;  many 
of  his  people  were  slain,  and  many  were  carried  to  Da- 
mascus, and  to  Samaria  ;  but  afterward  the  people  were 
released  from  prison  at  the  word  of  the  prophet  "712 
Oded.  Ahaz  continued  to  be  very  wicked,  and  he  set 
up  idols  in  Jerusalem.  At  his  death  his  son  Hezekiah 
came  to  the  throne  in  his  stead. 

in^pTn  Hezekiah,  the  son  of  Ahaz,  reigned  in  Jerusa- 
lem twenty  and  nine  years.  He  was  a  very  good  and 
pious  king;  he  destroyed  all  the  idols,  and  restored 
the  worship  of  the  true  God.     He  sent  to  all  Israel  and 


46        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Judah  and  invited  them  to  come  and  keep  the  passover; 
and  many  of  the  people  came  and  rejoiced,  for  there  had 
not  been  such  a  passover  kept  since  the  days  of  King 
Solomon.  God  prospered  Hezekiah  in  his  wars  against 
his  enemies. 

When  n^nab  Sennacherib,  king  of  Syria,  came  up 
against  Judah,  Hezekiah  made  him  a  present  of  some 
of  the  gold  and  silver  out  of  the  house  of  God,  in  order 
to  bribe  him  to  depart,  and  not  trouble  him.  Some 
years  after,  Sennacherib  sent  again  an  army  to  take 
Jerusalem.  Hezekiah  then  prayed  earnestly  to  God  for 
help,  and  Isaiah,  the  prophet,  told  him  that  he  would 
be  saved ;  and  the  angel  of  the  Lord  slew  in  one  night,  in 
the  camp  of  the  Assyrians,  one  hundred  and  eighty- five 
thousand  men.  In  the  morning,  Sennacherib,  the  king 
of  Assyria,  went  home  ashamed,  and  dwelt  at  a  place 
called  Nineveh ;  and  while  he  was  worshipping  in  the 
house  of  his  idol,  his  own  sons  killed  him. 

In  those  days  Hezekiah  fell  sick,  and  was  near  his 
death.  Hezekiah  prayed  to  God  to  recover;  God  heard 
his  prayer,  and  assured  him  that  be  should  live  fifteen 
years  longer. 

After  this,  Hezekiah  oiFended  God,  by  showing  the 
messengers  of  the  king  of  Babylon  all  his  treasures. 
God  told  him,  through  the  prophet  Isaiah,  that  he  would 
punish  him  for  it,  that  all  those  treasures  should  be 
carried  into  Babylon.  Hezekiah  humbled  himself  before 
God,  and  therefore  the  Lord  did  not  do  so  while  He- 
zekiah lived.  When  Hezekiah  died,  he  was  buried  in 
one  of  the  principal  sepulchers  of  the  sons  of  David ; 
and  all  the  people  of  Judah  and  all  the  inhabitants  of 
Jerusalem  did  him  honor  at  his  death.  And  Manasseh, 
his  son,  reigned  in  his  stead. 

TW272  Manasseh,  the  son  of  Hezekiah,  was  twelve  years 
old  when  he  began  to  reign  over  Judah  in  Jerusalem, 
and  he  reigned  fifty  and  five  years.  Manasseh  did 
not  follow  the  good  example  of  his  father.  He  wor- 
shipped the  sun,  moon,  and  stars,  and  wrought  much 
evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord.     God  punished  him  for 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       47 

his  wickedness,  and  sent  against  him  the  captain  of  the 
king  of  Assyria,  who  took  him  among  the  thorns,  bound 
him  with  fetters,  and  carried  him  to  Babylon.  When 
Manasseh  found  himself  in  this  trouble,  he  prayed  to 
God  to  relieve  him  ;  the  Almighty  heard  his  prayer,  and 
brought  him  back  to  Jerusalem,  and  set  him  again  upon 
his  throne,  and  then  Manasseh  repented  of  his  sins,  and 
removed  all  the  idols  that  he  had  made. 

When  Manasseh  died  he  was  buried  in  the  garden  of 
his  own  house,  and  Amon,  his  son,  came  to  the  throne 
in  his  stead. 

yifca  Amon,  the  son  of  Manasseh  reigned  over  Judah 
in  Jerusalem  two  years.  Amon  was  a  very  wicked 
king,  and  served  idols ;  but  he  did  not  repent,  as  his 
father  had  done.  His  servants  conspired  against  him, 
and  killed  him  in  his  own  house ;  the  people  then  fell 
upon  the  servants  and  slew  them,  for  killing  their  king ; 
and  Josiah,  the  son  of  Amon,  was  made  king  in  the  stead 
of  his  father. 

imE&O  Josiah,  the  son  of  Amon,  was  eight  years  old 
when  he  began  to  reign,  and  he  reigned  over  Judah  in 
Jerusalem  thirty  and  one  years. 

Josiah  was  a  very  good  and  pious  king.  He  did  all 
in  his  power  to  restore  the  people  to  the  worship  of  God. 
He  removed  and  destroyed  all  the  idols  that  were  among 
the  people.  He  then  repaired  the  temple.  And  wThile 
the  people  were  engaged  in  repairing  the  temple, 
irppin  Hilkiah,  the  priest,  found  a  book  of  the  law  of 
God  given  by  Moses  to  the  people ;  and  when  the  priest 
brought  it  to  the  king,  he  rent  his  clothes  and  mourned, 
when  he  reflected  how  little  the  law  of  God  had  been 
observed.  The  king  then  gathered  all  the  people  to- 
gether, and  read  to  them  all  the  words  of  the  book  of 
the  law  which  had  been  found.  He  also  made  a  covenant 
with  the  people  of  Judah  to  perform  all  that  was  written 
in  this  book. 

Josiah  then  sent  messengers  to  mbn  Huldah,  the 
prophetess  (who  dwelt  at  the  college  in  Jerusalem)  say- 
ing:   Go,  inquire  of  the  Lord  for  me  concerning  the 


48        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

book  that  has  been  found.  Huldah,  the  prophetess,  told 
them  that  Jerusalem  would  be  destroyed,  but  not  in  the 
lifetime  of  Josiah.  In  the  eighteenth  year  of  the  reign 
of  the  king  Josiah,  he  ordered  the  feast  of  the  Passover 
to  be  kept  in  Jerusalem ;  and  on  the  fourteenth  day  of 
the  first  month  they  killed  the  Paschal  Lamb  unto  the 
Lord.  Many  people,  both  of  Israel  and  of  Judah,  were 
present  at  this  passover.  This  passover  of  Josiah  was 
kept  still  more  strictly  than  the  one  kept  in  the  days 
of  Hezekiah.  In  fact,  no  such  passover  had  been  kept 
since  the  days  of  Samuel,  the  prophet.  In  the  days  of 
Josiah,  Pharoahnechoh,  the  king  of  Egypt,  went  up 
against  the  king  of  Assyria  to  battle,  and  king  Josiah 
went  out  against  the  king  of  Egypt  without  having  been 
directed  by  the  Lord  so  to  do.  The  king  of  Egypt  sent 
word  to  Josiah  to  forbear,  but  he  would  not.  In  this 
battle  he  was  slain,  and  was  buried  in  one  of  the  burial 
places  of  his  father.  And  all  Judah  and  Jerusalem 
mourned  for  him,  also  the  prophet  Jeremiah,  who  lived 
in  those  days,  lamented  the  death  of  the  king.  His  son 
Jehoahaz  was  made  king  in  his  stead. 

tn&im  Jehoahaz,  the  son  of  Josiah,  reigned  in  Jerusa- 
lem three  months.  He  was  a  wicked  king,  and  God  sent 
the  king  of  Egypt  against  him,  who  took  him  away  from 
Jerusalem,  made  him  prisoner,  and  carried  him  to  Egypt, 
where  he  died.  The  king  of  Egypt  made  Eliakim,  the 
brother  of  Jehoahaz,  king  in  his  stead,  and  changed  his 
name  to  Jehoiakim. 

t^p*nm  Jehoiakim  reigned  over  Judah,  in  Jerusalem, 
eleven  years.  He  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the  sight 
of  the  Lord,  and  God  sent  the  nations  round  about  him 
to  disturb  him,  and  Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Babylon, 
came  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  bound  the  king  of  Judah  in 
fetters,  and  carried  him  to  Babylon.  Nebuchadnezzar 
also  carried  away  all  the  vessels  out  of  the  house  of  God, 
and  put  them  in  his  own  temple  at  Babylon.  Jehoiakim 
died  in  shame  and  his  son  Jehoiachin  reigned  in  his 
stead. 

yp*W  Jehoiachin  reigned  over  Judah,  in  Jerusalem, 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        49 

three  months,  and  he  did  that  which  was  evil  in  the 
sight  of  the  Lord ;  and  God  sent  Nebuchadnezzar,  the 
king  of  Babylon,  who  took  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  and 
carried  the  king  to  Babylon,  together  with  ten  thousand 
prisoners,  and  the  rich  treasures  of  gold  and  silver, 
that  were  found  in  the  temple,  and  in  the  king's 
house.  The  king  of  Babylon  then  made  Mattania,  the 
uncle  of  Jehoachin,  king  in  Jerusalem,  and  he  called  him 
Zedekiah. 

mpns  Zedekiah  reigned  in  Jerusalem  eleven  years. 
He  was  the  last  king  of  Judah,  and  he  did  that  which 
was  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord.  Zedekiah  rebelled 
against  the  king  of  Babylon,  to  whom  he  had  sworn  to 
be  true  by  the  name  of  the  Great  God.  And  it  came 
to  pass,  that  on  the  tenth  day  of  the  tenth  month,  Fna 
Tivise,  Nebuchadnezzar,  the  king  of  Babylon,  laid  siege 
to  Jerusalem,  and  on  the  ninth  day  of  the  fifth  month 
Sa>  in  the  eleventh  year  of  the  reign  of  Zedekiah,  Ne- 
buzaradan,  captain  of  the  guard,  a  servant  of  the  king 
of  Babylon,  went  into  Jerusalem,  and  burnt  the  temple 
of  the  Lord,  the  palace  of  the  king  and  all  the  houses 
in  Jerusalem.  He  thus  destroyed  the  whole  of  the  city, 
and  carried  many  of  the  people  ftito  captivity.  He  took 
away  also  all  the  vessels  that  belonged  to  the  temple. 

Zedekiah  was  taken  prisoner ;  and  his  sons,  by  the 
order  of  the  king  of  Babylon,  were  slain,  in  the  presence 
of  their  father.  The  eyes  of  the  unfortunate  Zedekiah 
were  then  put  out,  and  he  was  bound  with  fetters  of 
brass,  and  carried  as  a  captive  to  Babylon. 

After  Zedekiah,  there  were  no  more  kings  in  Judea. 

After  all  this  had  been  done,  the  king  of  Babylon 
appointed  Tfl^iia  Gedaliah,  the  son  of  Ahikim,  Governor 
of  Judah,  but  soon  after  his  appointment  he  was  slain 
by  a  person  named  Ishmael. 

Johana,  the  son  of  Kareah,  one  of  the  captains  under 
Gedaliah,  routed  Ishmael,  and  drove  him  out  of  the  land. 
Ishmael  then  fled  into  Egypt,  and  took  with  him  many 
of  the  people  who  settled  in  different  places.  Jeremiah 
the  prophet  accompanied  these  people  into  Egypt. 
5 


50        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

•  T  -  T*     " 

ELIJAH,    THE    PROPHET. 

Elijah  was  a  prophet  who  lived  in  the  days  of  Ahab, 
king  of  Israel.  God  sent  Elijah  the  prophet  to  reprove 
Ahab,  and  to  foretell  that  there  would  be  neither  dew 
nor  rain  for  several  years. 

The  Almighty  told  Elijah  to  hide  himself  by  the 
brook  Cherith,  and  that  the  ravens  should  feed  him 
there.  Elijah  obeyed  God,  and  went  and  hid  himself 
by  the  brook  Cherith,  and  the  ravens  brought  him  food 
in  the  morning,  and  in  the  evening ;  and  he  drank  of 
the  waters  of  the  brook.  At  length  the  brook  became 
dried  up,  because  for  some  time  there  had  been  no  rain 
in  the  land.  God  then  sent  Elijah  the  prophet  to  a 
widow  woman  at  Zarephath,  to  be  maintained.  This 
woman  had  only  one  handful  of  meal  in  a  barrel,  and  a 
little  oil  in  a  cruise. 

God  miraculously  increased  the  flour,  and  the  oil; 
and  thus  he  sustained  Elijah,  and  also  the  woman  with 
whom  he  dwelt. 

While  Elijah  was  in  the  house  of  the  widow,  her  son 
fell  sick  and  died,  and  Elijah  prayed  to  God,  and  the 
child  was  restored  to  life.  And  when  Elijah  brought 
the  child  unto  his  mother  alive,  she  said :  Now  I  am 
convinced  that  thou  art  a  man  of  God,  and  that  the  word 
of  the  Lord  in  thy  mouth  is  truth. 

At  the  end  of  three  years,  God  told  Elijah  to  go 
and  show  himself  unto  Ahab.  Elijah  did  so,  and  desired 
Ahab  to  summon  all  Israel  together  with  the  four 
hundred  and  fifty  prophets  of  Baal,  (an  idol  worshipped 
by  Ahab),  to  try  whether  the  God  of  Israel  was  the  true 
God,  or  the  idol  that  Ahab  worshipped. 

Ahab  did  as  the  prophet  Elijah  had  commanded  him, 
and  the  four  hundred  and  fifty  prophets  of  Baal  were 
gathered  unto  Mount  Carmel.  Elijah  then  said  to  all 
the  people :  How  long  halt  ye  between  two  opinions'? 
If  the  Lord  be  God,  follow  him;  but  if  Baal  then  follow 
him.     Elijah  further  said  unto  the  people,  I  even,  I, 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        51 

only  remain  a  prophet  of  the  Lord,  but  BaaPs  prophets 
are  four  hundred  and  fifty.  Bring  us  two  bullocks  ;  let 
them  take  one  bullock,  cut  it  in  pieces,  and  lay  it  on 
wood,  but  put  no  fire  under  it;  and  I  will  dress  the 
other  bullock,  and  put  no  fire  under  it. 

And  call  ye  on  the  name  of  your  gods,  and  I  will 
call  in  the  name  of  my  God ;  and  the  God  that  answer- 
1  eth  by  Sre,  let  him  be  God:  and  all  the  people  were 
contented  with  the  proposition. 

The  prophets  of  Baal  cried  aloud  all  day,  and  cut 
themselves  with  knives,  but  there  was  no  fire  came  down 
to  burn  their  offering. 

Elijah  then  said  to  the  people,  Come  near  to  me! 
Elijah  then  took  twelve  stones,  and  built  an  altar  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord,  and  made  a  trench  about  the  altar  to 
contain  water.  He  then  cut  the  bullock  into  pieces,  and 
laid  them  on  the  wood  on  the  top  of  the  altar,  and 
poured  water  over  them  until  the  trench  was  filled  with 
water.  Toward  evening,  Elijah  prayed  to  God,  who 
sent  a  fire  from  heaven,  which  burnt  Elijah's  offering, 
the  stones,  and  even  the  water  that  was  in  the  trench 
consumed.  And  when  all  the  people  saw  this,  they  fell 
upon  their  faces  and  exclaimed/  The  Lord,  he  is  God  ! 
the  Lord,  he  is  God  !  Elijah  then  ordered  all  the  pro- 
phets of  Baal  to  be  slain.  Immediately  after  this  event, 
the  Almighty  caused  the  rain  to  fall;  the  land  again 
became  fruitful,  and  the  famine  ceased. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  that  when  the  Lord  was  about 
to  take  up  Elijah  into  heaven,  that  Elijah  went  with 
Elisha  from  Gilgal.  And  Elijah  said  unto  Elisha, 
Tarry  here,  I  pray  thee,  for  the  Lord  hath  sent  me  to 
Bethel.  This  Elisha  refused  to  do,  saying,  I  will  not 
leave  thee.  So  the  two  went  ofc$  and  came  to  the  river 
Jordan.  And  Elijah  took  his  mantle,  and  smote  the 
waters,  which  parted,  and  they  two  went  over  on  dry 
ground.  While  the  two  prophets  wTere  talking,  there 
appeared  a  chariot  and  horses  of  fire,  and  Elijah  was 
taken  up  by  a  whirlwind  into  heaven.  When  Elisha  saw 
this,  he  cried  out,  My  father!  my  father!  and  saw  him 


52         A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

no  more.     He  then  took  up  the  mantle  which  fell  from 
Elijah,  and  went  back  and  stood  by  the  bank  of  Jordan. 

•  t  -         t     •  v: 
ELISHA,   THE    PROPHET. 

Elisha,  who  was  with  Elijah,  the  prophet,  when  he 
was  taken  up  into  heaven,  succeeded  him  in  the  office 
of  prophet. 

Elisha  performed  many  miracles. 

He  smote  the  waters  of  the  river  Jordan  with  the 
mantle  of  Elijah,  saying,  Where  is  the  Lord  God  of 
Elijah?  and  the  waters  parted,  and  he  passed  over. 

When  he  came  near  to  the  city  of  Jericho,  the  people 
complained  to  him,  that  the  water  was  not  wholesome, 
and  he  threw  some  salt  in  the  water,  and  it  became 
sweet,  and  fit  to  drink. 

When  he  went  to  Bethel,  some  children  from  the  city 
mocked  him,  and  he  cursed  them  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  and  there  came  two  she  bears  out  of  the  wood, 
.and  tore  in  pieces  forty  and  two  of  the  children. 

When  the  kings  of  Israel,  Judah  and  Edom,  went  to 
war  with  the  king  of  Moab,  there  was  again  a  great 
scarcity  of  water,  and  Elisha  was  sent  for,  who  came, 
and  prayed  to  God,  who  sent  plenty  of  water  for  the 
people. 

A  widow  woman  came  to  Elisha,  and  complained 
to  him  that  her  landlord  had  come  to  take  her  two  sons 
for  slaves.  Elisha  said  to  the  woman,  Pray,  what  have 
you  in  the  house?  to  which  she  answered,  Nothing  but 
a  pot  of  oil.  Elisha  then  said  to  her,  Go,  borrow  some 
vessels  of  your  neighbors,  and  pour  out  the  oil  into  all 
those  vessels,  and  as  they  become  full,  put  them  aside ; 
the  woman  did  so,  and  then  told  Elisha  what  she  had 
done ;  Go,  said  Elisha,  sell  the  oil,  and  pay  your  debts, 
and  live  in  peace  with  your  children. 

When  Elisha  passed  through  a  place  called  Shunem, 
a  woman  came,  and  pressed  him  to  take  refreshment ; 
she   then   prepared   for   him   a  comfortable   chamber, 


A    CLASS   BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  53 

wherein  he  might  abide  whenever  he  pleased  to  come 
thither.  Elisha  promised  her  that  she  should  have  a 
son  in  return  for  her  kindness  to  him.  And  the  woman 
had  a  son  at  the  time  Elisha  had  foretold.  One  day, 
after  the  boy  had  grown  up,  he  wTent  out  into  the  field 
to  his  father.  While  there,  he  complained  to  his  father 
of  a  pain  in  his  head ;  the  boy  was  taken  home,  and 
shortly  after  he  died.  The  mother  ran  immediately  to 
the  prophet  Elisha,  and  told  him  what  had  happened. 
Elisha  then  went  to  the  woman's  house,  and  prayed  to 
the  Almighty,  and  the  child  was  restored  to  life.  Elisha 
then  brought  the  child  unto  his  mother,  who  fell  at  his 
feet,  and  bowed,  and  tendered  her  heartfelt  and  grateful 
thanks,  God  having  at  his  prayer  restored  to  her  her 
only  child. 

IfcStt  Naaman,  captain  of  the  armies  of  the  king  of 
Syria,  being  afflicted  with  leprosy,  was  advised  to  go 
to  the  prophet  Elisha.  He  did  so,  and  Elisha  told  him 
to  wash  himself  seven  times  in  the  river  Jordan,  and  he 
should  be  cured.  Naaman  at  first  refused  to  obey  the 
prophet's  direction ;  but  his  servants  persuaded  him, 
and  he  went  down  to  the  river  Jordan  and  dipped  him- 
self seven  times,  and  his  flesh  became  quite  clean. 
Naaman  then  went  to  the  prophet  and  said  to  him,  Now 
I  know  that  there  is  no  God  in  all  the  earth,  but  in 
Israel.  Naaman  then  pressed  the  prophet  to  take  a 
present  from  him,  but  which  he  refused.  When  Naaman 
departed,  Gehazi,  the  servant  of  Elisha,  ran  after  him, 
and  reported  to  him  that  there  were  two  young  men  of 
the  prophets  who  came  from  the  Mount  Ephraim,  and 
begged  he  wTould  give  them  a  talent  of  silver  and  two 
changes  of  garments.  Naaman  immediately  gave  him 
two  talents  of  gold  and  two  changes  of  garments.  When 
Gehazi  returned,  Elisha  rebuked  him  for  his  misconduct, 
and  said,  May  the  leprosy  of  Naaman  come  upon  thee ! 
and  Gehazi  was  ever  afterward  a  leper,  as  a  punishment 
for  his  covetousness,  and  telling  falsehoods. 

Some  of  the  sons  of  the  prophets  came  to  Elisha  and 
complained  to  him  that  their  dwellings  were  too  small 


5i  A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

for  them,  and  they  asked  leave  of  Elisha  to  enlarge 
them,  which  he  readily  granted ;  when  they  were  in  the 
forest  cutting  down  some  wood  to  build  with,  one  of  the 
men  let  the  head  of  his  ax  fall  into  the  water.  He  cried 
unto  the  prophet,  Alas  !  this  ax  was  not  mine  !  it  was 
borrowed !  The  prophet  cut  down  a  stick,  and  cast  it 
into  the  water  into  which  the  iron  had  fallen,  and 
immediately  the  iron  began  to  swim;  the  prophet  then 
said  to  the  man,  Take  up  thy  ax ;  and  he  did  so. 

When  the  king  of  Syria  went  to  war  against  Israel, 
Elisha,  the  prophet,  sent  to  the  king  of  Israel,  and  told 
him  not  to  go  to  a  certain  place,  for  the  king  of  Syria 
intended  to  be  there ;  the  king  of  Israel  saved  himself 
through  this  information  given  him  by  the  prophet.  The 
king  of  Syria  sent  a  host  to  take  Elisha,  who  prayed  to 
the  Almighty  to  smite  the  people  with  blindness ;  and 
the  Lord  smote  the  people  with  blindness  as  Elisha  had 
prayed.  Elisha  then  led  the  blind  people  to  Samaria, 
and  then  he  prayed  to  the  Lord  to  open  their  eyes,  and 
the  Lord  opened  the  eyes  of  those  people,  and  their  sight 
was  restored.  The  king  of  Israel  said  to  the  prophet, 
Shall  I  smite  them?  No,  said  Elisha,  give  them  to  eat, 
and  then  send  them  back  to  their  master.  The  king  of 
Israel  obeyed  the  prophet,  and  thence  forward,  until  the 
reign  of  Benhadad,  the  armies  of  Syria  ceased  to  war 
with  Israel. 

When  Benhadad,  king  of  Syria,  besieged  Samaria, 
there  was  a  severe  famine  in  the  land.  The  king  of 
Israel  wTent  to  Elisha,  the  prophet,  and  Elisha  said, 
Hear  ye  the  word  of  the  Lord :  to-morrow  about  this 
time  the  famine  shall  cease,  and  there  shall  be  plenty. 
One  of  the  lords,  in  whose  presence  this  announcement 
was  made,  would  not  believe  it,  and  Elisha  said,  Thou 
shalt  see  it  wTith  thine  eyes,  but  thou  shalt  not  eat  of  it. 
And  it  came  to  pass  as  Elisha  had  foretold,  that  the 
famine  ceased,  and  there  was  plenty  of  corn  and  flour ; 
and  the  nobleman  who  disbelieved  the  prophet  was  trod- 
den to  death  at  the  gate  of  the  city. 

When  Elisha  came  to  Damascus,  Benhadad,  the  king 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        55 

of  Syria,  was  sick,  and  it  was  told  to  the  king  that  the 
man  of  God  was  there.  The  king  said  unto  Hazael, 
Take  a  present  in  thine  hand,  and  go  meet  the  man  of 
God,  and  ask  him  whether  I  shall  recover  from  this 
disease.  Hazael  took  a  present  and  went  to  Elisha,  as 
the  king  had  commanded.  Elisha  said  to  Hazael,  that 
the  king  would  certainly  die.  Elisha  then  wept;  Hazael 
observing  this,  said,  Why  does  my  lord  weep?  Because, 
answered  Elisha,  1  know  that  thou  wilt  become  king, 
and  that  thou  wilt  oppress  the  children  of  Israel.  Hazael 
left  Elisha,  and  returned  to  the  king,  his  master,  and  on 
the  following  day  the  king  died,  and  Hazael  reigned  in 
his  stead. 

When  Elisha  was  on  his  death  bed,  Joash,  the  king 
of  Israel,  went  to  see  him,  and  Elisha  prophesied  that 
he  should  smite  the  Syrians  three  times.  After  which 
Elisha  died.  It  came  to  pass  in  the  following  year,  that 
a  man  was  buried  in  the  sepulcher  of  Elisha,  and  when 
the  body  touched  the  bones  of  Elisha,  the  man  revived, 
and  stood  again  on  his  feet. 

iDlon  *nw 

t  :  v 

EZRA,    THE    SCRIBE. 

Ezra,  who  was  a  ready  scribe  in  the  law  of  God,  went 
from  Babylon,  and  obtained  permission  from  Artaxerxes, 
king  of  Persia,  to  take  gold  and  silver  to  beautify  the 
temple  in  Jerusalem ;  and  many  of  Ezra's  friends  went 
with  him,  to  assist  him  in  that  good  work.  Ezra,  zealous 
for  the  religion  of  his  God,  and  the  welfare  of  his  peo- 
ple, exhorted  them  to  be  obedient  to  the  laws  of  God, 
and  to  repent  of  the  sins  which  they  had  committed. 

Ezra  prayed  to  God  to  pardon  the  sins  of  the  people ; 
and  the  people  promised  him  that  they  would  reform, 
and  be  attentive  in  future  to  their  duty  to  God 

Ezra  being  anxious  that  the  people  should  know  the 
law  of  God,  introduced  the  practice  of  reading  it  in 
Hebrew,  and  translating  it  into  the  Chaldaic  language, 
which  the  people  understood  in  those  days ;   this  regu- 


56        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

lation  enabled  the  people  to  comprehend  the  law  of 
Moses,  which  contains  all  the  duties  of  man  to  his  Godt 
to  himself,  and  his  fellow  creature. 

rram 

t  :  v  : 

NEHEMIAH. 

Nehemiah  was  the  son  of  Hachaliah.  He  was  cup- 
bearer to  Artaxerxes,  the  king  of  Persia.  When  Ne- 
hemiah heard  of  the  distress  of  his  brethern  in  Jerusa- 
lem, he  fasted,  and  prayed  to  God.  He  then  asked 
permission  of  the  king  to  go  up  to  Jerusalen,  and  rebuild 
the  city  of  his  fathers.  The  king  granted  his  request, 
and  gave  orders  that  the  governors  of  the  provinces 
should  assist,  and  that  they  should  give  them  some 
timber,  cut  from  the  king's  forest.  Nehemiah  rode  round 
Jerusalem  at  night,  to  examine  the  ruins,  and  then 
appointed  persons  to  repair  the  walls  and  the  gates. 

Nehemiah  encouraged  the  people  (who  were  disturbed 
in  their  work  by  their  enemies)  to  trust  in  their  God, 
and  be  ready  to  defend  themselves  against  their  enemies. 

The  city  being  rebuilt,  on  the  first  day  of  the  seventh 
month,  all  the  people  were  gathered  together  in  one 
street.  And  Ezra,  the  scribe,  read  in  the  book  of  the 
law,  and  explained  the  same  to  all  the  people,  and  ex- 
horted them  to  repent  of  their  past  sins,  and  to  be  obedient 
to  the  laws  of  God  in  future.  He  then  said  prayers  to 
God,  and  all  the  people  said  Amen. 

Nehemiah,  together  with  Ezra,  the  scribe,  having 
found  that  the  people  were  growing  very  ignorant  of  the 
laws  of  their  God,  ordained  that  the  law  should  be  read 
in  the  several  towns  and  cities.  And  from  this  com- 
menced the  building"  of  synagogues,  for  the  people  to 
assemble  in,  for  divine  worship.  The  people  having  for- 
gotten much  of  their  Hebrew  during  the,  captivity  in  Ba- 
bylon, did  not  well  understand  the  Holy  Scripture,  and 
therefore,  when  Ezra  read  the  law  to  the  people,  he 
explained  every  verse  to  them  in  Chaldee,  which  lan- 
guage they  understood,  having  learned  it  while  they  were 
at  Babylon. 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  57 


ESTHER. 


Esther  was  a  beautiful  Hebrew  maiden,  brought  up 
by  her  cousin  Mordecai.  Mordecai  was  an  Israelite, 
who,  with  many  of  his  nation,  had  been  carried  into 
captivity  by  the  king  of  Babylon. 

EnTHcna  Ahasuerus,  the  king  of  Persia,  made  a  great 
feast  in  Shushan,  and  sent  for  **&&)  Vashti,  the  queen, 
to  appear  before  the  nobles.  This  she  refused  to  do ; 
and  the  king,  therefore,  put  her  away,  and  took  Esther 
into  the  palace,  and  made  her  queen  instead  of  Vashti. 

yan  Haman  was  the  prime  minister  and  favorite  of  the 
king;  and  proud  of  being  thus  honored,  made  every 
one  bow  to  him.  This  ^Wfc  Mordecai  refused  to  do. 
Haman,  vexed  at  the  treatment  of  Mordecai,  persuaded 
the  king  to  allow  him  to  send  out  orders  to  kill  all  the 
Israelites  in  his  dominions,  Mordecai,  who  knew  all 
that  passed,  and  had  seen  the  decree  published  in  Shu- 
shan, sent  to  queen  Esther  to  tell  her  all  that  had 
occured.  He,  therefore,  requested  Esther  to  go  to  the 
king,  and  petition  him  to  save  the  lives  of  his  people. 

Esther  immediately  ordered  a  fast  to  be  kept  for 
three  days,  and  prayed  to  God  to  help  the  people ;  and 
though  conscious  of  her  danger  in  going  to  the  king,  it 
having  been  the  law  of  that  country  to  put  to  death 
those  who  approached  the  king,  unless  called  by  him, 
except  such  to  whom  the  king  shall  hold  out  the  golden 
scepter.  Esther,  aware  of  her  danger,  yet  with  pious 
resignation,  said,  I  will  go  to  the  king,  although,  con- 
trary to  the  law,  and  if  I  perish,  I  perish ! 

On  the  third  day  Esther  attired  herself  in  royal  robes, 
and  went  to  the  inner  palace  to  the  king,  although  she 
knew  that  it  was  instant  death  to  any  one  who  ap- 
proached the  king,  unless  he  held  out  the  golden  scepter. 

When  the  king  saw  Esther,  he  immediately  held  out 
his  scepter  to  her,  and  promised  to  grant  her  request,  be 
what  it  might,  even  the  half  of  his  kingdom. 


58        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Esther  invited  the  king  and  Haman  to  partake  of  a 
banquet  which  she  had  prepared  for  them. 

The  king  and  Haman  went  to  the  banquet,  when 
Esther  requested  they  would  return  on  the  following  day. 
Haman  was  so  pleased  at  being  invited  to  the  queen's 
banquet,  that  he  went  home,  and  set  up  a  gallows  fifty 
cubits  high,  to  have  Mordecai  hanged  thereon. 

During  that  night  the  king  could  not  sleep,  and  he 
had  the  books,  containing  the  records  of  the  kingdom, 
read  to  him.  By  the  record  it  appeared  that  Mordecai 
had  saved  the  king  from  being  poisoned  by  two  of  his 
officers. 

The  king  then  asked  what  reward  had  been  given  to 
Mordecai,  and  he  was  told  that  Mordecai  had  not 
received  any  reward. 

Haman  had  just,  at  this  moment,  arrived  to  ask  the 
king's  permission  to  have  Mordecai  hanged  on  a  gallows 
of  fifty  cubits  high,  which  he  had  prepared.  Immedia- 
tely on  Haman's  entrance  into  the  king's  presence,  the 
king  said  to  him,  What  shall  be  done  unto  the  man 
whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor  ?  Haman,  thinking 
that  no  one  but  himself  could  be  deserving  to  have  the 
royal  favor  shown  to  him,  said  to  the  king,  For  the 
man  whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor,  let  the  royal 
apparel  be  brought,  and  the  horse  that  the  king  rideth 
upon,  and  the  royal  crown  which  is  set  upon  his  head, 
and  let  one  of  the  king's  most  noble  princes  put  these 
garments  on  the  man  whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor, 
and  bring  him  on  horseback  through  the  streets  of  the 
city,  and  proclaim  before  him:  "Thus  shall  be  done  to 
the  man  whom  the  king  delighteth  to  honor."  Then 
said  the  king  to  Haman,  Make  haste,  and  take  the 
clothes  and  the  horse,  as  thou  hast  said,  and  do  so  unto 
Mordecai,  the  Jew,  who  sits  at  the  king's  gate;  let 
nothing  fail  of  all  that  thou  hast  spoken. 

Haman  was  thus  compelled  to  obey  the  king's  com- 
mand, and  show  all  these  honors  to  Mordecai,  whom  he 
hated,  and  whom  he  wished  to  have  had  hanged. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       59 

The  king  and  Haman  went  to  the  queen's  banquet  in 
the  evening,  when  Esther  supplicated  the  king,  that 
the  t^Tir^  Jews,  who  were  her  kindred,  might  be  saved 
from  the  destruction  to  which  the  wicked  Haman  had 
destined  them. 

The  king  ordered  Haman  to  be  hanged  immediately, 
on  the  same  gallows  that  he  had  prepared  for  Mordecai. 
Mordecai  was  then  put  into  Haman's  place,  and  allowed 
to  send  orders  to  every  place  in  which  Jews  dwelt, 
permitting  them  to  defend  themselves  against  all  those 
who  might  seek  to  kill  them. 

When  the  day  came,  the  Jews  defended  themselves, 
and  slew  many  of  their  enemies,  among  whom  were  the 
ten  sons  of  Haman. 

Esther  and  Mordecai  then  ordered  all  the  Israelites  to 
keep  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  days  of  the  month  *na 
Adar,  in  every  year,  as  days  of  thanksgiving  to  the  Al- 
mighty, in  commemoration  of  this  great  salvation  ;  and 
to  make  them  days  of  feasting  and  rejoicing. 

These  two  days  are  called  &*W  Purim,  from  the  word 
^ilD  Pur,  which  signifies  a  lot,  because  Haman  had  cast 
lots  on  which  day  he  should  execute  his  wicked  purpose. 
These  days  are  held  as  days  of  feasting  and  merry 
making,  sending  presents  from  one  to  another,  and  above 
all,  not  forgetting  the  poor,  so  that  they  may  enjoy 
themselves  on  these  days  equally  with  the  rich. 

JOB. 

Job  was  a  pious  man  who  lived  in  the  land  of  Uz.  He 
was  a  very  rich  man.  He  had  ten  children.  Job  al- 
ways offered  sacrifices  to  God  after  his  children  had  been 
feasting ;  for,  says  he,  perhaps  while  my  children  were 
merry,  they  might  have  forgotten  their  duty  to  their  God. 
God  tried  Job  whether  he  was  truly  religious  and  pious. 
The  robbers  came,  and  took  away  all  his  property  in 
one  day ;  all  his  children  were  destroyed  by  a  storm, 
which  blew  down  the  house  in  which  they  were  feasting. 


60       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Job  was  afflicted  with  sore  boils  from  the  crown  of  his 
head  to  the  soles  of  his  feet ;  this  was  all  done  to  prove 
the  patience  and  piety  of  Job.  Job  did  not  murmer  at 
the  troubles  that  befell  him. 

Job  praised  God  in  all  his  misfortunes.  Job's  wife 
pursuaded  him  to  forsake  his  religion  and  his  God,  as 
he  had  been  so  severely  afflicted ;  but  Job  said,  No,  I 
will  not  forsake  my  religion !  shall  we  receive  all  good 
and  no  bad?  Job  said,  the  Lord,  he  is  righteous,  and  I 
will  praise  his  holy  name. 

Three  friends  of  Job  came  to  visit  him,  and  comfort 
him  in  his  troubles.  Seven  days  Job  sat  in  ashes,  and 
was  silent.  When  Job's  friends  saw  his  troubles,  they 
thought  he  had  been  guilty  of  very  great  crimes;  they 
would  not  believe  him  when  he  declared  his  innocence. 

A  fourth  friend  came  to  visit  Job,  and  reason  with 
him,  and  his  three  companions,  upon  the  goodness  of 
God  to  all  his  creatures,  his  power,  his  wisdom,  and  his 
entire  control  over  everything  in  existence,  and  above 
all,  that  it  was  impossible  for  man  to  know  how  the 
Almighty  governs  the  world,  and  regulates  everything 
in  it. 

The  Almighty,  however,  who  had  witnessed  the 
patience  of  his  pious  servant  Job,  made  it  known  to  the 
friends  of  Job,  that  he  was  in  every  respect  a  pious  and 
a  virtuous  man,  because  he  did  not  at  all  murmur  against 
the  Almighty,  during  the  severe  afflictions  which  he 
suffered.  God  then  relieved  Job  from  all  his  troubles. 
Job  had  again  ten  children ;  he  became  very  rich,  and 
lived  to  see  four  generations. 

irrwish 

t  :  -   : 

ISAIAH. 

Isaiah  was  a  prophet,  who  prophesied  during  the 
successive  reigns  of  Uzziah,  Jotham,  Ahaz,  and  He- 
zekiah,  kings  of  Judah.  He  is  said  to  have  been  cruelly 
murdered  by  the  wicked  Manasseh,  one  of  the  kings  of 
Judah. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       61 

Isaiah  warned  the  people  of  the  punishment  that 
would  be  inflicted  on  them  for  their  disobedience.  He 
exhorted  all  the  people  to  repent,  and  told  them  that 
they  would  be  pardoned,  if  they  would  repent  and  be 
good. 

The  book  of  Isaiah,  which  contains  all  these  prophe- 
cies, in  one  of  the  most  beautifully  written  books  of  the 
whole  Bible.  The  style  of  Isaiah  is  truly  grand,  poeti- 
cal and  sublime. 

mrv 

t  :    :  • 
JEREMIAH. 

Jeremiah  was  one  of  the  priests  in  the  land  of  Benja- 
min, and  God  called  him  to  be  a  prophet,  when  he  was 
very  young,  in  the  days  of  Josiah,  king  of  Judah.  Je- 
remiah was  sent  by  the  Almighty  to  tell  the  people  and 
the  princes,  and  the  kings  of  Judah,  that  Jerusalem 
should  be  destroyed;  and  that  the  people  and  the  princes 
should  be  carried  away  captive  into  Babylon,  as  a 
punishment  for  their  sins,  and  that  they  should  re-main 
there  for  seventy  years. 

Jeremiah  also  foretold  the  return  of  the  Israelites  to 
their  own  land,  in  joy  and  comfort,  at  the  expiration  of 
the  seventy  years  of  captivity. 

When  Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Babylon,  besieged 
Jerusalem,  Zedekiah,  the  king  of  Judah,  shut  up  the 
Prophet  Jeremiah  in  the  court  of  the  prison,  which  was 
in  the  king's  house,  because  he  foretold  that  Jerusalem 
would  be  taken  by  the  enemy ;  and  that  Zedekiah,  the 
king,  would  be  carried  captive  to  Babylon.  When  Je- 
remiah was  set  at  liberty,  he  endeavored  to  run  away,  to 
escape  from  Jerusalem,  but  was  seized  by  the  guard, 
and  thrown  into  a  dungeon.  Ebedmelech,  a  servant  in 
the  king's  house,  drew  him  up  with  ropes,  by  leave  of 
the  king,  and  Jeremiah  remained  in  the  court  of  the 
prison  till  the  city  was  taken.  When  the  city  was 
taken,  Nebuchadnezzar  gave  orders  to  the  officers  of  the 
army  to  take  care  of  Jeremiah,  and  to  give  him  his 
liberty,  to  go  wherever  be  pleased.  Jeremiah  chose  to 
6 


62  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 

remain  in  the  land  of  Israel,  and  he  put  himself  under 
the  care  of  Gedaliah,  whom  the  king  of  Babylon  had 
made  governor  over  the  land. 

Gedaliah  was  afterward  slain ;  and  Jeremiah  was 
carried  into  captivity  with  a  great  number  of  the  people 
into  Egypt.  While  in  Egypt,  Jeremiah  reproved  the 
Israelites  for  worshiping  idols,  and  foretold  to  them  their 
ruin.  He  foretold  the  severe,  but  proper,  judgment  of 
God  against  the  people  of  Babylon,  for  their  cruelty 
toward  Israel.  Jeremiah  wrote  all  these  things  in  a 
book,  and  directed  one  of  the  captains  to  read  it  to  the 
people  when  he  should  come  to  Babylon,  and  then  to 
bind  a  stone  to  it,  and  cast  it  into  the  river  Euphrates, 
and  say  the  following : — Thus  shall  Babylon  sink,  and 
never  rise  again.  Jeremiah  wrote  the  book  of  n^a  called 
the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah.  As  also  tn^p  ^iso, 
Prayers  of  lamentation  and  mourning,  which  are  read 
on  the  morning  of  the  fast  of  San  nscn  the  ninth  day  in 
the  month  na  Jiv.  t 

EZEKIEL. 

Ezekiel  the  prophet,  prophesied  during  the  captivity 
of  Judah.  The  chief  object  Ezekiel  had  in  view  was, 
to  comfort  the  people  in  their  distress.  At  the  same 
time  he  pointed  out  the  punishment  with  which  the  peo- 
ple would  be  visited  for  their  crimes.  And  that  severe 
judgment  would  certainly  fall  on  the  prophets  who  had 
misled  the  people,  but,  at  the  same  time,  he  foretold  the 
destruction  of  those  nations,  who  had  ill-treated  the 
Israelites.  He  foretold  the  return  of  Judah  and  Israel, 
from  their  captivity ;  and  that,  at  the  end,  the  people 
will  all  be  prosperous  and  happy. 

..  .  T 

DANIEL. 

Daniel  was  a  young  man  of  the  tribe  of  Judah,  who 
was  carried  away  captive  by  Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of 
Babylon,  in  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim,  king  of  Judah. 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  63 

Daniel  and  his  companions,  Shadrach,  Mesbach,  and 
Abednego,  were  ordered  to  be  fed  with  the  king's 
provision,  and  to  be  taught  the  learning  of  the  Chal- 
deans. These  young  men  refused  to  eat  of  the  king's 
meat,  and  preferred  living  on  pulse  and  water,  rather 
than  defile  themselves  by  eating  of  the  king's  food. 
Afterward  it  appeared  that  these  young  men  looked 
much  more  healthy  than  those  who  were  fed  from  the 
king's  table. 

Nebuchadnezzar  dreamed  a  dream,  which  very  much 
affected  him,  and  which  dream  he  had  forgotten  before 
morning.  The  king  gave  orders  that  all  the  wise  men 
should  be  called  to  tell  him  his  dream.  The  wise  men 
came,  but  not  one  of  them  could  do  so.  The  king  then 
said,  that  he  would  have  them  all  killed,  if  they  did  not 
tell  him  his  dream,  and  gave  orders  that  the  same  should 
be  done.  Daniel,  and  his  three  friends,  prayed  to  God 
to  reveal  to  them  the  secret  of  the  king's  dream,  so  that 
they  might  not  perish  with  the  rest  of  the  wise  men  of 
Babylon.  God  made  the  dream  known  to  Daniel,  and 
he  told  the  king  both  the  dream,  and  the  interpretation 
thereof. 

Nebuchadnezzar  made  Daniel  ruler  over  Babylon,  and 
his  three  companions  he  made  officers  under  him. 

Nebuchadnezzar  set  up  a  golden  image,  and  made 
every  one  worship  it.  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abed- 
nego, refused  to  worship  the  image;  and  they  were, 
therefore,  cast  into,  a  fiery  furnace,  which- was,  by  the 
king's  command,  heated  seven  times  more  than  usual. 
The  furnace  was  made  so  hot,  that  the  flames  thereof 
burned  the  men  by  whom  they  were  thrown  into  it. 
Immediately  after  Shadrach,  Meshach,  and  Abednego, 
had  been  cast  into  the  fire,  the  king  declared  that  he 
saw  four  men  walking,  instead  of  the  three  whom  he  had 
caused  to  be  thrown  into  the  fire.  The  king  was  greatly 
surprised,  and  called  the  men  out  of  the  furnace,  released 
them,  and  blessed  the  Almighty,  who  had  sent  an  angel 
to  deliver  them.  He  then  made  a  decree,  that  no  man 
should  speak  against  the  God  of  Israel.    After  this,  the 


64        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

king  had  another  dream,  in  which  he  saw  a  tall  tree  that 
had  been  cut  down,  and  the  stump  of  it  was  left  in  the 
earth,  and  that  a  voice  from  heaven  declared,  that  he 
should  have  the  heart  of  a  beast  given  him  instead  of  a 
man's  heart,  for  seven  years.  Daniel  explained  the 
dream  in  this  way,  that  Nebuchadnezzar,  the  king, 
would  be  driven  from  his  kingdom ;  that  he  would  become 
mad,  and  dwell  with  the  beasts  of  the  field  during  seven 
years;  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  would  be  again 
favored  with  his  reason,  and  be  restored  to  his  throne. 
At  the  end  of  twelve  months,  while  the  king  was  walking 
in  the  palace  of  Babylon,  and  boasting  of  his  grandeur 
and  majesty,  a  voice  came  from  heaven,  to  tell  him  that 
his  kingdom  was  taken  from  him,  and  that  he  should  be 
driven  from  among  men.  He  was  immediately  seized 
with  madness,  and  he  ran  away  from  among  his  friends, 
and  lived  with  the  beasts  in  the  open  field,  till  his  hairs 
were  grown  like  eagles'  feathers,  and  his  nails  like 
birds'  claws.  At  the  end  of  seven  years,  the  Almighty 
restored  unto  the  king  his  reason,  and  suiFcred  him  again 
to  sit  on  his  throne,  and  to  be  established  in  his  kingdom 
as  formerly.  Then  Nebuchadnezzar  praised  the  Lord 
God,  the  Almighty  King  of  heaven  and  earth,  and 
acknowledged  his  goodnes  and  power. 

In  the  days  of  Belshazzar,  the  grandson  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar, Daniel  was  sent  for  to  the  court,  to  read  and 
explain  four  words,  which  were  written  upon  the  wTall, 
by  a  hand  which  had  appeared,  while  Belshazzar  held  a 
great  feast  in  the  palace.  God  was  angry  with  Bel- 
shazzar, because  he  and  his  nobles  drank  out  of  the  holy 
vessels,  which  had  been  taken  out  of  the  temple  of  God 
at  Jerusalem,  and  at  the  same  time  praised  and  adored 
their  idols  of  gold  and  silver.  The  meaning  of  the 
writing  on  the  wall  was,  that  God  had  taken  away  the 
kingdom  from  Belshazzar,  and  had  given  it  to  the  Medes 
and  Persians.  Daniel  was  then  clothed  in  scarlet,  with 
a  chain  of  gold,  and  he  was  made  their  ruler  over  the 
kingdom.     Belshazzar  was  slain  that  very  night,  by  the 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       65 

army  under  the  command  of  Cyrus,  the  general,  who 
took  the  city  of  Babylon. 

Darius,  the  Emperor  of  the  Medes  and  Persians, 
became  also  king  of  Babylon.  Darius  made  Daniel 
ruler  over  one  hundred  and  twenty  princes.  The  princes 
were  jealous  of  the  honor  given  to  Daniel,  and  knowing 
that  Daniel  always  prayed  to  his  God,  they,  therefore, 
persuaded  the  king  to  make  a  decree,  that  if  any  man 
should  be  found  saying  his  prayers,  within  thirty  days, 
he  should  be  cast  into  the  den  of  Lions.  Daniel  did  not 
mind  the  king's  decree,  but  prayed  to  God,  as  usual, 
three  times  a  day.  The  princes  reported  to  the  king, 
that  Daniel  had  transgressed  his  command ;  the  king 
was  sorry  for  Daniel,  but  the  law  could  not  be  altered. 
Daniel  was  therefore  cast  into  the  den  of  lions;  but 
God  shut  the  mouths  of  the  lions,  and  they  did  not  hurt 
Daniel. 

The  king  went  early  in  the  next  morning  to  the  den 
of  lions,  and,  to  his  great  joy,  discovered  Daniel  unhurt. 
The  king  then  directed  that  all  the  enemies  of  Daniel 
should  be  thrown  into  the  den  of  lions,  by  which  they 
were  all  devoured.  Then  the  king  Darius  sent  a  decree 
throughout  all  nations,  that  all  men  should  fear  the  God 
of  Daniel. 

Daniel  prayed  to  God  that  his  nation  might  be  released 

from  captivity ; and  an  angel  was  directed  by  the 

Almighty  to  inform  Daniel  that  God  was  well  pleased 
with  him,  that  the  holy  city  should  be  rebuilt  by  the 
command  of  the  king  of  Persia. 

H  O  S  E  A. 

Hosea  was  a  prophet,  who  lived  in  the  days  of  Uzziah, 
Ahaz  and  Hezekiah,  kings  of  Judah,  and  in  the  days  of 
Jeroboam,  the  son  of  Joash,  king  of  Israel.  His  pro- 
phecies were  chiefly  directed  to  the  ten  tribes  of  Israel, 
to  exhort  them  to  obedience  to  the  divine  will,  and  to 
refrain  from  following  wicked  pursuits.    The  people  of 


66        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Judah  are  exhorted  by  the  prophet  to  take  warning  by 
the  misfortunes  which  befell  the  kingdom  of  Israel. 

JOEL. 

Joel,  the  son  of  Pethuel,  prophesied,  at  the  time 
when  there  was  a  severe  famine  in  the  land,  in  the  days 
of  Jehoram,  the  son  of  Ahab,  king  of  Israel.  He 
exhorted  the  people  and  the  priests  to  forsake  their 
evil  ways.  He  called  all  the  elders  together,  into  the 
house  of  God,  and  directed  them  to  keep  a  fast,  and  to 
pray  to  God  to  remove  the  evils  under  which  they  were 
suffering.  He  also  prophesied  the  final  restoration  of 
the  people. 

T 

AMOS. 

Amos,  the  prophet,  was  one  of  the  herd'smen  of  Te  - 
koah,  and  God  called  him  to  prophesy  in  the  days  of 
Uzziah,  king  of  Judah,  and  in  the  days  of  Jeroboam, 
the  son  of  Joash,  king  of  Israel.  He  foretold  the 
punishment  that  God  would  bring  on  the  several  nations, 
for  their  wicked  actions,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the 
prophet  particularly  cautions  his  own  people  against 
acting  wickedly.  He  exhorts  them  to  repentance,  for 
otherwise  they  would  bring  down  upon  themselves  God's 
anger;  and  he  would  afflict  them  with  shame  and 
contempt  among  the  nations,  and  severe  troubles  among 
themselves. 

ppnasi 

t  :  - 

OBADIAH. 

Obadiah,  the  prophet,  foretold  the  destruction  of  the 
Edomites,  on  account  of  their  wickedness,  and  more 
particularly  for  their  hatred  to  the  chosen  people  of 
God.  He  also  foretold  the  return  of  the  people  of 
Israel,  and  that  they  w^ould  overcome  all  their  enemies, 
and  ultimately  enjoy  their  own  country,  as  inherited 
from  their  forefathers. 


A    CLASS   BOOK   FOR   JEWISH   YOUTH  67 

mi"1 

T 

JONAH. 

Jonah  was  a  prophet,  who  lived  in  the  days  of  Jero- 
boam the  Second,  one  of  the  kings  of  Israel.  God  sent 
Jonah  to  the  city  called  maTJ  Nineveh,  to  foretell  to  the 
inhabitants  that,  in  consequence  of  their  wickedness, 
they  would  be  destroyed.  Jonah  disobeyed  God,  and 
fled  to  a  place  called  Tarshish.  While  he  was  on  his 
voyage  there  was  a  great  storm,  and  Jonah,  sensible 
of  his  own  guilt,  told  the  sailors  to  throw  him  into  the 
sea,  which  they  did,  and  the  storm  ceased.  Jonah  was 
swallowed  by  a  large  fish,  and  he  remained  in  the  body 
of  the  fish  three  days  and  three  nights.  Jonah  prayed 
to  God,  and  the  fish  cast  him  out  upon  dry  land.  God 
sent  Jonah  a  second  time  to  Nineveh,  to  tell  the  people 
that  he  would  destroy  the  city  within  forty  days.  The 
people,  mindful  of  the  warning  given  them  by  Jonah, 
repented  of  their  sins,  and  God,  accordingly,  pardoned 
them. 

pot 

T      * 

MICHAH. 

Michah,  the  prophet,  lived  in  the  days  of  Isaiah,  the 
prophet.  Michah,  the  prophet,  rebuked  the  people  of 
Judah  and  Israel  for  their  sins.  He  described  to  the 
people  how  the  Almighty  would  punish  them  for  their 
transgressions,  and,  at  the  same  time,  he  exhorted  them 
to  repentance  for  past  sins,  and  to  obendience  in  future ; 
and  to  put  their  trust  in  God,  who  would  certainly  de- 
liver his  people  Israel  from  the  hands  of  their  oppressors. 
The  prophet  concludes  with  praises  and  thanksgivings 
to  the  Almighty,  who  has  ever  been  kind  and  merciful 
to  his  chosen  people,  as  promised  to  their  forefathers. 

T 

NAHUM. 

Nahum,  the  prophet,  describes,  very  clearly  and 
exactly,  the  destruction  of  the  army  of  Sennacherib, 


68        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

the  overthrow  of  the  Assyrian  army,  and  the  ruin  of 
Nineveh.  The  prophet  treats  of  the  power  and  goodness 
of  God,  and  of  his  compassion  on  his  chosen  people,  Israel. 

HABAKKUK. 

Habakkuk,  the  prophet,  complains  of  the  sins  of  the 
people  of  Israel,  and  threatens  them  with  the  captivity 
of  Babylon,  as  a  punishment  for  their  wickedness.  He 
shows  that  their  enemies  also  will  suffer  for  their  cruelty 
toward  God's  own  people,  and  finishes  his  prophecies 
with  a  prayer  to  the  Almighty,  that  his  people  may  be 
delivered,  and  at  the  end  be  happy  in  their  own  homes. 

t:  -    : 
ZEPHANIAH. 

Zephaniah,  the  prophet,  prophesied  in  the  days  of 
Josiah,  the  son  of  Amon,  king  of  Judah.  The  prophefc 
complains  of  the  many  crimes  of  Judah.  He  exhorts 
the  people  to  turn  from  their  wicked  ways.  He  cautions 
the  people  against  the  crime  of  serving  idols.  He  fore- 
tells the  destruction  of  the  enemies  of  Israel,  and  warns 
the  people  of  the  captivity  of  Babylon.  The  prophet 
also  comforts  the  people,  and  tells  them  that  in  the  end 
they  will  be  restored  to  their  own  country,  and  that  all 
natoins  will  acknowledge  that  the  name  of  the  Lord  is 
called  by  them ;  and  thus  they  will  fear  them,  and  no 
more  do  them  any  harm ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  they  will 
love  them,  and  be  in  friendly  union  with  them. 

HAGGAI. 

Haggai,  the  prophet,  was  one  of  the  men  of  the  great 
synagogue.  He  was  the  first  who  made  known  God's 
will  to  the  people,  after  their  return  from  Babylon.  He 
reproved  the  priests  and  the  people  for  their  neglect  in 
the  building  of  the  Temple.  At  the  same  time  he  kindly 
comforted  those  who  mourned  the  loss  of  the  glory  of  God, 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        69 

by  telling  them  that  the  glory  of  the  second  Temple  will 
be  far  greater  than  the  first ;  and  that  the  Almighty,  in 
his  goodness,  will  shed  his  blessings  upon  them ;  and 
that  they  will  prosper  in  all  their  undertakings. 

rTOT 

t  :-  : 

ZECHARIAH. 

Zechariah,  the  prophet,  lived  in  the  days  of  Haggai, 
and  was  also  one  of  the  men  of  the  great  synagogue.  He 
prophesied  that  God  would  have  pity  on  his  people  Is- 
rael, and  that  he  would  restore  the  holy  worship  of  the 
Temple.  He  therefore  exhorted  the  people  to  return  to 
their  God  with  a  contrite  heart,  and  walk  in  the  paths 
of  virtue  and  truth.  He  foretells,  in  the  name  of  God, 
that  if  the  people  practise  righteousness,  and  refrain 
from  wickedness,  that  the  days  of  mourning  and  fasting 
will  be  turned  to  feasting  and  rejoicing.  He  particularly 
mentions  the  following  fast  days :  the  fast  of  the  fourth 
month,  which  is  the  seventeenth  day  of  the  month  rifcti; 
the  fast  of  the  fifth  month,  which  is  San  risen  the  ninth 
day  in  Av\  the  fast  of  the  seventh  month,  which  is 
tfr*i"n  tins  the  fast  of  Gedaliah,  on  the  third  day  of  the 
month  ^isri;  and  the  fast  of  the  tenth  month,  which  is 
MM  mra?  the  tenth  day  in  the  month  Tivise. 

•  t  :  - 
MALACHI. 

Malachi,  the  prophet,  was  also  one  of  the  men  of  the 
great  synagogue,  and  he  lived  at  the  time  of  Haggai 
and  Zechariah.  Malachi  was  the  last  of  the  prophets. 
He  assisted  Nehemiah,  when  he  returned  to  Jerusalem, 
to  reform  the  conduct  and  the  morals  of  the  people.  He 
reproved  the  people  for  having  been  discontented,  and 
pointed  out  to  them  the  goodness  and  mercy  of  the  great 
God.  He  also  rebuked  the  priests  for  their  ill  conduct, 
and  concludes  with  a  full  promise  of  salvation  to  all  those 
who  are  good,  and  truly  religious,  as  it  is  written,  "Be- 
hold I  will  send  you  Elijah,  the  prophet,  before  the  coming 
of  the  great  and  tremendous  day  of  the  Lord.     Amen. 


OF  THE  JEWISH  MONTHS  AND  YEARS. 


Time  is  the  duration  of  things;  it  is  divided  into  years,  months, 
weeks,  days,  hours,  minutes,  and  seconds. 

A  year  is  the  space  of  twelve  months,  which  is  the  time  the  sun 
takes  in  passing  through  the  twelve  signs  of  the  zodiac. 

The  zodiac  is  a  circle  showing  the  earth's  yearly  path  through  the 
heavens.  On  this  circle  are  marked  the  twelve  signs,  which  are 
numbers  of  stars,  reduced,  by  the  fancy  of  men,  into  the  form  of 
animals,  and  from  these  forms  they  take  their  name. 

A  month  is  the  time  the  moon  occupies  in  going  round  the  earth. 
There  are  two  kinds  of  months,  lunar  and  solar.  Lunar  months  are 
calculated  by  the  moon ;  solar  months  are  reckoned  by  the  sun. 

"We,  the  Hebrews,  make  use  of  lunar  months,  which  consist  alter- 
nately of  twenty-nine  and  thirty  days. 

We  learn  from  the  sacred  volume  to  take  our  computations  by 
lunar  months.  The  plan  adopted  by  us  at  this  day  is  that  which 
was  so  admirably  arranged  by  the  celebrated  and  learned  Kabbi 
Hillel,  the  Prince. 

The  difference  between  the  solar  and  the  lunar  months  would 
occasion,  in  a  period  of  seventeen  years,  the  feast  of  Passover  to 
occur  in  the  month  of  Tishree  instead  of  Neson ;  and  thus  the  feast 
of  Tabernacles  would  be  in  Neson  instead  of  Tishree. 

To  avoid  such  imperfections  in  our  calculations,  our  rabbins  have 
arranged  that  every  third  year  shall  consist  of  thirteen  lunar  months 
instead  of  twelve.  This  additional  month  is  called  an  intercalary 
month,  and  the  year  in  which  it  occurs  is  called  1"OS  DjE  or 
Leap  Year. 

By  this  arrangement  it  will  be  found  that,  in  the  course  of 
nineteen  years,  there  are  seven  leap  years,  as  follow : 

The  third,  sixth,  eighth,  eleventh,  fourteenth,  seventeenth,  and 
nineteenth. 

The  moon  was  more  regarded  by  our  ancestors  than  the  sun,  be- 
cause by  the  new  moon  all  our  festivals  and  fasts  were  regulated. 

The  new  moon  was  always  the  beginning  of  the  month.  Persons 
were  appointed  to  watch  its  first  appearance,  and  to  represent  the 
same  to  the  Sanhedrin,  who  immediately  made  it  known  to  the 
whole  of  the  nation. 

The  new  moon  was  celebrated  by  the  sound  of  the  trumpets,  and 
an  extra  sacrifice  was  offered  in  the  Holy  Temple. 

Our  ancestors  had  originally  no  particular  names  for  their  months. 
Wq  occasionally  find  in  the  Bible  names  given  to  some  of  the 
months.  These  names  were  made  use  of  as  descriptive  of  the  season 
in  which  such  month  occured;  as  we  find  by  Moses,  our  law-giver, 
who  called  the  name  of  the  first  month  S"0&  Abib,  it  being  the 
spring  time  of  the  year. 
70 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR    JEWISH    YOUTH  71 

The  present  names  of  our  months  are  Chaldaic,  and  are  said  to 
have  been  first  made  use  of  by  our  nation  during  the  captivity  in 
Babylon.  History  informs  us  that  these  names  were  used  both  by 
the  Chaldeans  and  Persians. 

"We  always  reckon  our  day  from  evening  to  evening,  because,  in 
the  account  of  the  Creation,  the  evening  is  mentioned  before  the 
morning ;  and  thus  it  is  that  all  Sabbaths,  festivals,  and  fasts  com- 
mence from  the  previous  evening.  "We  have  no  particular  names  in 
the  Hebrew  for  the  days  of  the  week;  they  are  called  first,  second, 
*%.  third,  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  and  the  seventh  is  called  Sabbath. 

Week  seems  to  have  taken  its  rise  from  the  circumstance  of  the 
Creation  of  the  world  having  been  finished  in  six  days ;  and  God's 
having  rested  on  the  seventh  day  was  the  cause  of  observing  a 
Sabbath. 

In  former  times  we  had  three  sorts  of  weeks : 

First,  weeks  of  days,  which  were  reckoned  from  Sabbath  to 
Sabbath. 

Second,  weeks  of  years,  which  were  reckoned  from  one  Sabbatical 
year  to  another.  The  Sabbatical  year  happened  every  seventh  year. 
This  year  was  called  ntJEiWT  fl3E3  the  year  of  release. 

Third,  weeks  of  seven  times  seven  years,  or  forty-nine  years,  and 
the  fiftieth  year  was  called  the  year  of  b^  or  Jubilee. 

The  Jubilee  was  celebrated  on  the  day  of  atonement,  and  was 
proclaimed  by  the  sounding  of  rams'  horns  and  silver  trumpets. 

The  Jubilee  allowed  the  same  privileges  as  the  Sabbatical  year. 
On  both  these  occasions  the  ground  was  not  cultivated,  but  suffered 
to  lie  at  rest,  in  order  to  recruit  its  fruitful  powers;  all  Hebrew 
slaves  were  set  at  liberty ;  and  all  land  or  houses,  that  may  have 
been  sold  or  pledged,  returned  to  the  original  owners. 

We  thus  see  that  the  Sabbatical  year  was  evidently  appointed  to 
inculcate  humanity,  fellow-feeling,  and  brotherly  love. 

At  these  periods  the  Sovereignty  of  the  Almighty  was  publicly 
acknowledged  by  the  restoration  of  all  property  to  its  original  and 
proper  owner !  Brotherly  love  was  exercised  by  setting  at  liberty 
all  bond'smen ;  thus  showing  that  all  men  are  equal  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Lord;  and  humanity  was  promoted  by  the  care  which  was 
taken  of  the  poor  and  the  stranger. 


PART   II. 

nn:nn  nnby 

THE  TEN  COMMANDEMENTS. 


FIRST    COMMANDMENT. 

I  am  the  Lord,  thy  God,  who  brought  thee 
out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  out  of  the  house  of 
bondage. 

This  first  commandment  teaches  us,  that  the  Almighty 
Creator  of  heaven  and  earth  is  the  God,  who  brought 
our  forefathers  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  from  a  state 
of  slavery.  That  we  must  have  a  firm  belief  in  the 
existence  of  a  Supreme  Power,  who  governs  the  world 
with  justice,  mercy,  and  kindness.  If  we  look  at  the  great 
work  of  the  Creator  of  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  and 
every  thing  we  see  in  the  world,  and  observe  how  regu- 
larly every  thing  acts  and  performs,  we  must  be  convinced 
of  the  existence  of  God,  and  of  his  great  power  and 
goodness. 

SECOND    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  have  no  other  gods  before  me. 
Thou  shalt  not  make  unto  thee  any  graven 
image,  or  any  likeness  of  any  thing  that  is  in 
heaven  above,  or  that  is  in  the  earth  beneath, 
or  that  is  in  the  water  under  the  earth.  Thou 
shalt  not  bow  down  thyself  to  them,  nor  serve 
them;  for  I,  the  Lord,  thy  God,  am  a  jealous 
God,  visiting  the  iniquity  of  the  fathers  upon 
the  children,  unto  the  third  and  fourth  gene- 

72 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  73 

ration  of  them  that  hate  me;  and  showing 
mercy  unto  thousands  of  them  that  love  me, 
and  keep  my  commandments. 

The  second  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must 
not  worship  nor  put  our  faith  or  trust  in  any  created 
being,  but  our  adoration  is  to  be  directed  exclusively  to 
God,  the  Creator  of  every  thing.  We  must  not  make 
any  kind  of  image  or  figure  to  represent  the  Deity  and 
worship  it.  We  cannot  see  God,  and  therefore  we  cannot 
tell  what  form  or  shape  he  is ;  in  fact,  he  has  no  form 
nor  figure.  He  is  a  spirit,  the  nature  of  which  our 
feeble  understanding  cannot  comprehend.  And,  there- 
fore, we  must  not  attempt  to  make  an  image  to  represent 
the  Divine  Being. 

At  the  time  the  Almighty  vouchsafed  to  appear  on 
Mount  Sinai,  to  deliver  his  holy  law  to  his  people  Israel, 
there  existed  many  nations  who  did  not  know  the  true 
God ;  they  were  sensible  that  there  must  be  a  God,  but 
still  they  could  not  tell  who  or  what  that  God  was. 
Some  thought  the  sun  was  God,  others,  the  moon;  other 
persons,  again,  worshipped  animals.  The  people  of 
Egypt  worshipped  a  lamb,  as  their  God;  and  the  child- 
ren of  Israel,  coming  from  among  the  Egyptians  who 
served  such  idols,  might  probably  have  imitated  their 
example.  The  Almighty,  therefore,  immediately  after 
their  departure  from  Egypt,  commanded  them  not  to 
worship  any  other  being  but  Himself;  and  to  protect 
them  from  idolatry,  strictly  commanded  them  not  to 
make  any  likeness  of  anything  that  is  in  the  world,  to 
serve  or  to  worship. 

From  this  commandment  we  also  learn,  that  we  must 
not  pay  any  attention  to,  or  have  any  belief  in  witch- 
craft, or  enchantment,  for  that  is  equally  serving  idols. 
Witchcraft  was  formerly  practiced  by  wicked  people  to 
impose  upon,  and  deceive  the  ignorant ;  therefore,  our 
rmn  expressly  says,  "Thou  shalt  not  suffer  to  remain 
alive  among  you  those  'persons  who  practice  the  art  of 
witchcraft  "  because,  if  we  properly  consider  the  sub- 
7 


74        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

ject,  we  shall  be  convinced  by  our  own  reason,  that  the 
Almighty,  who  is  all  goodness,  will  never  delegate  any 
portion  of  his  power  to  human  beings,  to  be  exercised 
by  them  to  the  injury  of  their  fellow  creatures.  On  the 
contrary,  whenever  the  Almighty  did  please  to  impart 
a  portion  of  his  glory  to  man,  it  was  to  a  prophet;  a 
pious  and  virtuous  man  who  was  sent  among  the  people, 
to  point  out  to  them  the  way  in  which  they  should  walk, 
and  thus  be  rendered  happy.  We  must,  therefore, 
strictly  attend  to  this  doctrine,  to  acknowledge  one  God, 
to  pray  to  him,  to  love  him,  and  to  revere  him ;  and  at 
all  times  to  be  grateful  to  him  for  his  mercies. 

THIRD    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  take  the  name  of  the  Lord, 
thy  God,  in  vain,  for  the  Lord  will  not  hold 
him  guiltless  that  taketh  his  name  in  vain. 

The  third  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must  not 
make  use  of  the  name  of  God  in  vain.  We  must  not 
swear  by  the  name  God  on  every  trifling  occasion,  al- 
though that,  which  we  swear  to,  may  be  true.  We 
must,  therefore,  be  very  careful  not  to  use  the  name  of 
God  to  anything  that  is  false,  for  that  is  one  of  the 
greatest  crimes  of  which  we  can  be  guilty.  We  should 
at  all  times  be  careful  to  speak  the  truth,  and  then  there 
will  be  no  occasion  for  us  to  swear,  or  use  the  name  of 
God,  to  prove  that,  which  we  declare.  We  must  not 
accustom  ourselves  to  make  mention  of  the  name  of  God 
to  every  thing  we  say;  nor  ought  we  on  every  slight 
occasion  to  make  oaths  or  vowrs,  even  without  the  use  of 
the  sacred  name  of  God. 

From  this  commandment  we  also  learn,  that  we  must 
not  curse  any  one  in  the  name  of  God,  as  wicked  people 
generally  do ;  for  it  may  be,  that  the  curse  we  pronounce 
against  others,  will  fall  upon  ourselves. 

There  is  only  one  occasion  on  which  we  are  allowed 
to  make  use  of  an  oath,  which  is,  in  a  court  of  justice ; 
that  thereby,  the  truth  may  be  ascertained,  so  that  the 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        75 

innocent  may  be  exculpated,  and  the  guilty  punished. 
Therefore,  on  such  occasions  only,  are  we  allowed  to 
swear  by  the  name  of  God ;  this  being  the  most  im- 
pressive mode  of  declaring  that,  which  is  just  and  true. 

FOURTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Remember  the  Sabbath  day  to  keep  it  holy. 
Six  days  shalt  thou  labor,  and  do  all  thy  work. 
But  the  seventh  day  is  the  Sabbath  of  the 
Lord,  thy  God;  on  it  thou  shalt  not  do  any 
work,  thou,  nor  thy  son,  nor  thy  daughter, 
thy  man-servant,  nor  thy  maid-servant,  nor 
thy  cattle,  nor  the  stranger  that  is  within  thy 
gates.  For  in  six  days  the  Lord  made  heaven 
and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all  that  is  therein, 
and  rested  on  the  seventh  day,  therefore  the 
Lord  blessed  the  Sabbath  day,  and  hallowed  it. 

The  fourth  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must 
work,  and  do  all  our  labor  in  six  days  of  the  week,  and 
rest  on  the  seventh  day,  which  is  the  Sabbath,  in  honor 
of  the  Eternal  God.  On  the  nnin  Sabbath,  we  must  not 
do  any  manner  of  work.  We  must  not  attend  to  any 
kind  of  business  on  that  day.  The  Sabbath  must  be 
solely  devoted  to  rest,  and  to  worship  of  God.  By  this 
commandment  we  are  taught,  that  the  days  of  labor  are 
made  for  us  to  provide  ourselves  with  food,  clothing, 
and  other  necessary  articles  for  our  use  and  comfort ; 
and  that  the  day  of  rest  is  ordained  to  refresh  us,  and 
to  renew  'our  strength  and  power,  so  that  we  can 
resume  our  daily  labor  after  the  Sabbath.  Again,  by 
devoting  the  Sabbath  day  to  the  service  of  God,  when 
we  have  no  business  to  attend  to,  and  when  we  are  at 
rest,  we  are  then  enabled  to  think  and  reflect  on  the 
goodness  and  mercy  of  God  to  all  his  creatures.  We 
then  have  an  opportunity  of  calling  to  mind  our  conduct 
during  the  past  week,  to  reflect,  wherein  we  have  trans- 
gressed ;  so,  that  we  may  amend  our  conduct,  and  pray 


76        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

to  God  for  pardon,  and  that  he  will  direct  us  in  the 
paths  of  virtue. 

The  rate  Sabbath  is  a  sign  between  the  Almighty  and 
ourselves,  that  the  world  was  created  in  six  days,  and 
that  God  rested  on  the  seventh ;  as  it  is  written  in  the 
law  of  Moses:  "It  is  a  sign  for  ever,  for  in  six  days 
God  made  heaven  and  earth,  and  on  the  seventh  day  he 
rested,  and  was  refreshed." 

We  find  also  in  the  Bible,  "  Ye  shall  keep  the  Sabbath 
holy  unto  you;  every  one  that  defileth  it  shall  surely  be 
put  to  death,  for  whosoever  doeth  any  work  thereon,  that 
soul  shall  be  cut  off  from  among  his  people."  The  punish- 
ment inflicted  on  the  Sabbath  breaker  was  always 
severe,  though  just;  as  the  following  example  from  the 
Book  of  Numbers  demonstrates : 

While  the  children  of  Israel  were  in  the  wilderness, 
they  found  a  man  gathering  sticks  on  the  Sabbath  day. 
The  man  was  brought  to  Moses  and  Aaron,  who  applied 
to  the  Lord  to  know  how  they  should  treat  him  ;  and 
the  Lord  said  unto  Moses,  the  man  shall  surely  be  put 
to  death ;  and  all  the  people  brought  the  man  out  of  the 
camp,  and  stoned  him  with  stones,  and  he  died,  as  the 
Lord  had  commanded  Moses.  We  thus  see  how  terrible 
a  punishment  was  inflicted  on  this  man,  for  defiling  the 
Sabbath!  and  therefore  let  us  take  warning  by  him, 
and  keep  the  Sabbath  day  holy  to  the  Lord. 

The  institution  of  the  fQO  also  teaches  us  to  be  kind 
and  merciful  to  our  servants,  and  even  to  animals ;  be- 
cause, we  are  directed  to  let  our  servants  and  cattle  rest 
as  well  as  ourselves,  so  that  they  may  be  refreshed  and 
fit  to  resume  their  work  after  the  Sabbath. 

FIFTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Honor  thy  father  and  thy  mother,  that  thy 
days  may  be  long  upon  the  land,  which  the 
Lord,  thy  God,  giveth  thee. 

The  fifth  commandment  teaches  us  to  honor  and  obey 
our  parents  ;  for  to  them  we  owe  our  existence.  It  is 
our  duty  to  love,  honor,  and  respect  our  parents.    Thev 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        77 

feed  us,  and  nourish  us.  They  are  kind  to  us,  and 
teach  us  religious  knowledge  and  correct  conduct.  We 
ought,  therefore,  at  all  times,  be  ready  to  obey  them, 
and  to  attend  to  all  they  say.  We  must  use  every 
exertion  to  afford  them  pleasure,  by  properly  conducting 
ourselves ;  and  further,  we  must  not  fail  to  support  our 
parents,  with  the  best  of  our  means,  when  they  shall 
have  grown  old,  and  become  unable  to  do  for  themselves. 
From  this  commandment  may  also  be  deduced,  that  it 
is  our  duty  to  respect  our  elder  brothers  and  sisters,  our 
masters,  and  teachers;  also  our  superiors.  To  have 
respect  for  the  an  Rabbi,  or  High  Priest,  who  may  be 
placed  at  the  head  of  the  congregation  to  teach  them  the 
laws  of  God.  To  honor  and  respect  the  government 
under  which  we  live,  to  pray  for  its  peace  and  welfare, 
and  obey  all  its  laws  and  commands.  We  must  here 
remark,  that  this  is  the  only  one  of  the  ten  command- 
ments, for  obedience  to  which  a  reward  is  promised. 
This  evidently  shows  the  great  importance  the  Deity 
has  attached  to  it,  and  the  great  benefit  resulting  from 
a  strict  observance  of  our  duty  to  our  parents  ;  the  very 
foundation  of  all  moral  good  is,  to  be  dutiful  to  our 
parents. 

A  child  that  is  obedient  to  his  parents,  will  naturally 
pay  proper  attention  to  his  teachers,  and  have  respect 
for  his  superiors ;  and  above  all,  religiously  and  piously 
perform  his  duty  to  his  God ;  he  will  thus  become  pros- 
perous and  happy,  and  be  beloved  by  God  and  men. 

SIXTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  commit  murder. 

The  sixth  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must  not 
take  away  the  life  of  a  fellow-creature.  We  must  not  do 
anything  that  will  shorten  the  life  of  any  human  being, 
by  insult  or  oppression  of  any  kind,  for  whatever  we  do, 
tending  to  shorten  his  existence,  is  a  violation  of  this 
law.  We  must  not  stand  by,  and  see  a  human  being 
killed,  without  endeavoring  to  protect  him.  This  com- 
mandment also  enjoins  us  to  hasten  to  the  relief  of  our 


78        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

neighbor,  who  may  have  fallen  into  danger  by  fire, 
water,  or  any  other  calamity.  It  is  our  duty,  on  all 
such  occasions,  to  relieve  our  fellow  creatures.  We 
learn  also  from  this  commandment,  never  to  be  cruel  to, 
or  ill  treat  animals.  We  must  also  be  mindful  of  the 
preservation  of  our  own  lives ;  for,  as  life  is  granted  to 
us  by  God  himself,  we  have  no  right  to  be  careless  of 
that  great  gift ;  for  we  cannot  give  life,  and  therefore 
we  ought  not  to  trifle  with  it,  or  take  it  away.  We 
must  at  all  times  be  ready  to  assist  our  fellow  creature 
in  time  of  sickness,  and  endeavor  to  obtain  for  him  the 
nourishment  and  medicines  requisite  for  the  restoration 
of  his  health. 

SEVENTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery. 

The  seventh  commandment  teaches  us  to  be  true  and 
faithful  to  our  wives.  It  has  been  wisely  ordained  that 
a  contract  of  marriage  shall  take  place  between  male 
and  female,  which  shall  unite  them  in  love  and  affection 
all  the  days  of  their  lives.  It  is  our  duty  to  support 
our  wives  so  far  as  our  means  will  allow  us;  and  in 
return,  it  is  the  duty  of  a  wife  to  be  affectionate  to  her 
husband,  faithfully  to  attend  to  her  household  affairs, 
and  to  train  up  her  children  in  the  paths  of  virtue. 
Man  and  wife  should  always  live  in  peace  and  comfort 
with  each  other ;  no  disputes  nor  quarrels  should  inter- 
rupt the  harmony  of  the  marriage  state,  for  the  true 
purpose  of  marriage  is,  that  the  woman  should  be  a 
helpmate  to  the  man,  and  the  man  a  loving  partner  to 
the  woman  ;  their  home  will  then  be  an  abode  of  constant 
cheerfulness ;  and  their  children,  as  olive  branches  around 
their  table,  will  be  the  fruitful  source  of  their  joy  and 
happiness. 

EIGHTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  steal. 

The  eighth  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must 
not  take  away  the  goods  belonging  to  another,  under  any 
pretence  whatever.   We  must  not  steal,  either  privately 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       79 

or  publicly.  We  must  not  cheat  our  neighbor  by  giving 
him  false  weight,  or  short  measure.  We  must  not 
impose  upon  him  in  the  price,  by  charging  him  more 
than  the  value.  We  must  not  permit  the  property  of 
another  to  be  stolen,  if  we  can  prevent  it ;  nor  must  we 
receive  stolen  property,  for  that  is  even  wrorse  than  the 
theft  itself;  because,  by  so  doing,  we  not  only  commit 
sin  ourselves,  but  are  the  means  of  encouraging  others 
to  do  the  same.  We  learn,  also,  from  this  command- 
ment, that,  if  anything  be  deposited  with  us  for  safe 
custody,  we  must  carefully  preserve  it,  and  when  re- 
quired, restore  it.  If  we  should  find  anything  that  is 
not  our  own,  we  must  endeavor  to  discover  the  owner 
and  return  it  to  him.  If  we  should  borrow  money,  or 
anything  else,  we  must  pay  it,  or  restore  it  as  soon  as 
possible.  We  must  take  care  to  pay  the  laborer  his 
wages  when  his  work  is  finished,  for,  by  not  doing  so, 
we  are  wrongfully  withholding  his  property. 

Man  can  never  be  happy  with  wealth  obtained  in  an 
improper  manner.  A  man  who  is  guilty  of  dishonest 
acts  loses  his  honor  and  credit.  His  friends  will  shun 
and  despise  him.  None  will  put  any  trust  in  him,  nor 
have  any  dealings  with  him.  He  will  thus  become  an 
object  of  scorn,  forfeiting  not  only  the  respect  of  others, 
but  also  his  own  self-esteem.  How  wise  then  to  be 
honest  in  all  our  dealings !  Let  us  be  grateful  to  the 
Almighty  for  all  his  gifts:  this  will  insure  contentment — 
the  chief  source  of  happiness. 

NINTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  bear  false  witness  against 
thy  neighbor. 

The  ninth  commandment  teaches  us  not  to  bear  false 
witness  against  our  fellow  creature.  If  we  are  called 
before  a  magistrate  or  a  judge,  to  give  our  evidence  as 
to  what  we  may  have  seen  or  heard,  we  must  be  very 
careful  to  speak  the  truth.  This  commandment  also 
teaches  us,  that  wre  must  not  give  to  others  an  ill  name. 
We  must  not  tell  tales  about  each  other,  nor  spread  evil 


80        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

reports;  because  such  things  produce  much  mischief  and 
ill  feeling  among  friends.  If  we  see  any  one  acting 
wrongly,  it  is  our  duty  to  point  out  the  fault,  and 
persuade  the  offender  to  do  better  in  future;  and  then, 
he  will  respect  and  love  us.  We  must  never  speak  ill 
of  any  one,  even  if  it  be  the  truth,  much  less,  if  it  be 
false :  for  that  is  one  of  the  worst  of  crimes.  It  destroys 
the  friendship  between  man  and  man.  It  creates  con- 
fusion among  families ;  and  it  sometimes  destroys  the 
happiness  of  parent  and  child,  husband  and  wife,  brother 
and  sister.  We  must  therefore  be  very  careful  never  to 
be  guilty  of  slander,  the  hateful  cause  of  so  much  mischief. 

TENTH    COMMANDMENT. 

Thou  shalt  not  covet  thy  neighbor's  house, 
thou  shalt  not  covet  thy  neighbor's  wife,  nor  his 
man-servant,  nor  his  maid-servant,  nor  his  ox, 
norhisass,nor  any  thing  that  is  thy  neighbor's. 

The  tenth  commandment  teaches  us,  that  we  must  not 
covet,  or  desire,  the  property  or  goods  of  other  people. 
We  must  not  be  jealous  or  envious  of  our  neighbor,  be- 
cause he  has  something  more  than  we  have.  We  must 
at  all  times  be  contented  with  that  which  the  Almighty 
gives  us.  Covetousness  is  injurious  to  ourselves !  It 
creates  a  fruitless  desire  for  that  which  we  cannot  get, 
and  the  want  of  which,  renders  us  restless  and  unhappy. 
Nay  more !  too  often  induces  us  to  commit  theft,  fraud, 
and  many  other  wicked  actions.  We  should  always/ 
endeavor,  under  God's  blessing,  to  maintain  ourselves. 
We  should  at  all  times  be  industrious,  that  we  may 
enjoy  the  fruits  of  our  labor,  for  the  Scripture  enjoins 
us,  "Let  thy  hand  labor,  that  thou  mayest  eat.  Happy 
shalt  thou  be,  and  it  shall  be  well  with  thee."  We  must 
always  put  our  trust  in  God,  who  will  bless  the  work  of 
our  hands.  His  mercy  will  sustain  us,  if  we  are  diligent 
and  active,  as  expressed  in  the  Holy  Scripture : 

"The  Lord  will  never  suffer  the  soul  of  the  righteous 
to  famish. 


uhew  nfry  nvhtf 


THE  THIRTEEN  CREEDS,  OR,  CHIEF  PRIN- 
CIPLES OF  THE  JEWISH  RELIGION. 


FIRST    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  God, 
blessed  be  his  name,  is  the  Creator  and  Go- 
vernor of  all  created  beings;  and  that  he 
alone  has  made,  does  make,  and  ever  will 
make,  every  production. 

In  this  article  we  confess  our  belief  of  the  existence 
of  God,  who  made  the  world,  and  all  that  is  in  it ;  there 
is  nothing  made,  but  there  must  have  been  a  maker ; 
and  when  we  look  at  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  the  sun, 
the  moon,  and  the  stars,  and  observe  how  regular  they 
all  are  in  their  movements,  we  must  be  convinced  that 
some  Supreme  Power  has  made  them,  and  that  great 
and  mighty  power,  is,  the  God  whom  we  must  worship 
and  adore ;  and  thus  the  divine  Psalmist  expresses  it, 
"The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God,  and  thefrmameni 
showeth  the  work  of  his  hands." 

SECOND    CREED. 

Ibelieve,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea- 
tor, blessed  be  his  name,  is  the  one  and  only 
God ;  his  unite  is  unlike  any  other  unity  of 
which,  we  can  have  any  idea,  and  that  he  alone 
is  our  God,  who  was,  is,  and  ever  will  exist. 

In  this  article  we  acknowledge  our  firm  belief,  that 
God,  who  created  the  world,  is  the  only  God;  that 
there  cannot  be  any  other ;  that  it  is  quite  impossible 
to  compare  him  to  any  being  in  existence;  that  He  is  a 
perfect  Unit,  and  is  not  made  up  of  parts ;  and  there- 
81 


82       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

fore  cannot  be  divisible — that  is  to  say,  be  divided  into 
parts;  for  there  is  not  any  thing  on  earth,  concerning 
which,  we  can  form  any  idea,  but  something  else  may 
be  found,  if  not  exactly  like  it,  yet  nearly  the  same ; 
nor  is  there  anything  that  cannot  be  reduced  into  parts 
in  some  way  or  other.  This,  however,  is  not  the  case 
with  God.  He  is,  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word,  a  perfect 
Unit — unequalled,  one,  alone,  the  sole  Creator,  and 
Ruler  of  the  Universe. 

THIRD    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea- 
tor, blessed  be  his  name,  is  not  mortal;  that 
he  is  not  subject  to  any  of  those  changes  that 
are  likely  to  occur  to  mortals;  and  that  he  has 
not  any  form  or  figure  whatever. 

In  this  article  we  state  our  belief,  that  God  is  not 
corporeal,  that  is,  He  is  not  a  body,  He  is  not  a  mortal, 
because  a  mortal  dies;  a  mortal  is  subject  to  all  kinds 
of  diseases  and  changes  in  life.  The  Almighty  is 
immortal  and  unchangeable,  and  therefore  not  subject 
to  any  of  those  things  which  occur  to  mortal.  He  is  a 
spirit.  A  mortal  cannot  be  in  two  places  at  one  and 
the  same  time,  whereas  the  Almighty  is  every  where, 
and  in  every  place,  as  the  divine  Psalmist  says,  " The 
whole  earth  is  filled  with  the  glory  of  God." 

FOURTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea- 
tor, blessed  be  his  name,  is  the  first,  and  will 
be  the  last,  of  all  things. 

In  this  article  we  express  our  belief,  that  the  Al- 
mighty is  eternal,  without  any  beginning  or  end.  It  is 
evident  that  he  must  have  been  the  first  being,  because 
he  brought  everything  into  existence ;  and  without  him 
nothing  could  possibly  have  been  created ;  and  as  every 
thing  depends  solely  on  him,  he  must  be  eternal,  and 
therefore  cannot  have  any  end. 


A    CLASS   BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  83 

FIFTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea- 
tor alone,  blessed  be  his  name,  ought  to  be 
worshipped ;  and  that  we  ought  not  to  wor- 
ship any  other  being. 

In  this  article  we  acknowledge,  that  it  is  to  the  Al- 
mighty alone,  that  we  must  bend  our  soul  in  prayer, 
and  not  to  any  other  being  in  existence ;  for  it  is  to  the 
Almighty  alone  that  we  are  indebted  for  all  that  we 
have,  and  therefore  we  must  always  bear  in  mind,  that 
it  is  our  duty  on  all  occasions  to  be  grateful  to  him ; 
for  without  God's  fatherly  kindness  to  us,  it  would  be 
impossible  for  us  to  exist.  That  there  is  no  other  power 
in  heaven  or  earth  that  can  altar  the  arrangement  of  this 
great  and  vast  universe.  All,  All  depends  on  the  sup- 
reme power  of  God.  Therefore,  when  we  pray  to  God, 
we  must  do  so  with  feeling  and  earnestness ;  and  we 
must  be  sincere  in  our  confessions  before  the  great  Judge 
of  all  mankind. 

SIXTH    CREED, 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  all  the 
words  of  the  prophets  are  true. 

In  this  article  we  affirm  our  belief  that  the  Almighty 
has  given  power  to  the  prophets  to  communicate  to  us 
his  will,  and  that  all  which  they  have  said  is  true.  The 
Almighty,  in  his  goodness,  knowing  that  man,  unless 
taught,  would  be  but  little  better  than  the  brute  creation, 
has  therefore,  like  a  loving  father  to  his  children,  sent 
to  them,  in  every  age,  men  to  teach  them  his  laws, 
and  to  instruct  them  to  walk  in  the  paths  of  virtue  and 
piety.  All  this  knowledge  we  find  in  the  books  of  the 
prophets,  and  therefore  we  are  convinced  that  all  that 
the  prophets  have  said,  is  true,  and  worthy  of  our  im- 
plicit faith. 

SEVENTH  CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  pro- 
phecies of  Moses,  our  law-giver  (may  his  soul 


84        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

rest  in  peace),  are  true,  and  that  he  was  the 
chief  of  all  the  wise  men  that  were  before  him, 
and  those  who  came  after  him. 

In  this  article,  we  express  our  conviction  of  the  fact, 
that  Moses,  our  divine  law-giver,  was  the  greatest  of 
all  the  prophets  that  were  before  him,  as  well  as  those 
who  came  after  him,  and  that  all  he  has  said  to  us  is 
certain  and  true ;  as  contained  in  our  Holy  Bible.  Moses 
was  properly  called  the  father  of  all  the  prophets.  Moses 
was  in  every  degree  superior  to  all  the  other  prophets. 
He  was  appointed  to  bring  out  the  children  of  Israel 
from  the  land  of  Egypt.  He  was  directed  to  go  up  to 
the  Mount  Sinai,  and  there  to  receive  from  the  hand  of 
God  Himself,  the  two  tables  of  stone,  on  which  were 
written  the  ten  commandments. 

Moses,  by  the  direction  of  the  Almighty,  performed 
many  miracles.  And  unto  Moses  was  entrusted  the  task 
of  writing  from  the  word  of  God  Himself,  our  holy  law, 
which  contains  rules  and  laws  by  which  the  whole  world 
is  governed.  We  therefore  justly  acknowledge  Moses  to 
have  been  the  head  of  all  the  prophets,  and  of  all  the 
wise  men  that  ever  existed. 

EIGHTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  law, 
now  in  our  possession,  is  the  same  law  which 
was  given  to  Moses,  our  instructor. 

We  believe  and  are  convinced  that  the  law,  now  in 
our  possession,  is  the  very  same  that  Moses,  our  law- 
giver, received  from  the  Almighty  on  Mount  Sinai. 

In  order  that  the  law  might  be  carefully  handed  down 
from  one  generation  to  another,  Moses  wisely  ordained 
that  every  king  in  Israel  should  write  a  copy  of  the 
law  for  himself,  so  that  it  might  not  be  lost  or  forgotten, 
and  that  thereby  the  king  might  learn  to  rule  his  people 
with  justice  and  mercy.  This  direction  was  attended  to, 
by  the  kings  who  reigned  during  the  first  temple,  under 
the  inspection  of  the  priests  who  lived  in  those  days. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        85 

After  the  destruction  of  the  Holy  Temple,  the  MTin  law, 
in  later  days,  came  into  the  possession  of  Ezra  the  Scribe, 
•vho  made  a  correct  copy  of  it,  as  did  some  of  the  pro- 
)hets,  who  also  lived  in  those  days,  and  who  handed  it 
[own  to  their  descendants.  And  in  this  way  has  the  law 
ome  into  our  possession,  as  it  is  this  day.  It  is  there- 
ore  evident,  that  the  law  we  have  is  the  same  that  was 
pven  to  Moses  by  the  Almighty. 

NINTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  this  law 
will  never  be  changed,  and  that  the  Creator, 
blessed  be  his  name,  will  never  give  us  any 
other  law. 

We  here  express  our  conviction,  that  the  law  delivered 
to  us  by  Moses,  will  never  be  changed  or  altered ;  for 
as  this  law  emanates  from  God  Himself,  who  is  eternal, 
and  who  never  changes,  we  are  sure  that  the  law  must 
be  also  eternal  and  unchangeable,  because  God's  thoughts 
do  not  vary  like  the  thoughts  of  man ;  and  further,  God 
has  forbidden  us  to  make  any  alteration  in  the  law 
whatever.  We  must  not  add  thereto  nor  diminish  any 
thing  therefrom;  so  that  it  is  clear  and  plain  that  no 
change  can  be  made  in  the  law  of  that  God  who  is  per- 
fect, and  who  is  eternal. 

TENTH    CREED, 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea- 
tor, blessed  be  his  name,  knows  all  the  actions 
and  thoughts  of  man,  as  it  is  expressed  by 
the  divine  Psalmist,  "He  who  lias  formed  the 
hearts  of  all  men,  is  fully  acquainted  with  all 
their  ivories." 

In  this  article  we  admit  that  God  knows  all  our 
actions,  both  private  and  public ;  for,  as  God  is  the 
Creator  of  every  thing,  so  he  must  be  acquainted  with  all 
that  happens  in  the  world;  for,  the  Almighty,  who  is 
present  in  every  place,  observing  all,  to  the  world's 
8 


86       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

remotest  regions,  He  knows  also  our  most  secret 
thoughts,  and  ever}'  thing  that  we  intend  to  do.  Al- 
though the  Almighty  knows  all  our  actions,  even  before 
they  take  place,  still  he  does  not  interfere  with  what  we 
do.  God  has  given  us  a  free  will,  to  act  as  we  think 
proper.  Our  wise  men  have  very  justly  said  on  this 
subject,  "Everything  is  under  the  immediate  direction 
of  God,  except  the  fear  of  God."  The  Almighty  has 
given  us  the  power  to  act  as  we  think  best ;  and  accord- 
ing to  our  actions,  so  he  will  reward  or  punish  us.  At 
the  same  time,  He  invites  us,  in  his  gracious  goodness, 
to  act  righteously,  so  that  we  may  enjoy  happiness  in 
this  world,  and  everlasting  bliss  hereafter ;  as  Moses 
said  to  our  forefathers,  UI  call  heaven  and  earth  to  wit- 
ness, that  I  have  set  before  you  life  and  death,  blessing 
and  cursing;  therefore  I  advise  you  to  choose  life." 

ELEVENTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the  Crea-- 
tor,  blessed  be  his  name,  rewards  those  who 
keep  his  laws,  and  punishes  those  who  trans- 
gress them. 

In  this  article  we  firmly  acknowledge  our  belief,  that 
the  gracious  God  will  reward  those  who  do  well,  and 
punish  those  who  do  wrong.  The  Almighty,  in  kindness 
to  us,  has  given  us  laws  which  teach  us  to  be  good,  and  to 
do  that  which  is  right ;  it  is  therefore  our  duty,  strictly  to 
obey  all  the  laws  which  he  has  framed  for  our  guidance ; 
and  therefore,  if  we  do  not  attend  to  what  he  has  com- 
manded us,  we  must  naturally  expect  to  be  punished ; 
but  if  we  act  righteously,  and  conduct  ourselves  properly, 
we  may  be  sure  that  the  Almighty  will  reward  us  for  so 
doing,  as  we  are  taught  in  our  Holy  Law,  Blessings 
will  attend  those  who  act  correctly,  and  punishment  will 
follow  evil  conduct.  And  although  punishment  may  not 
immediately  follow  the  committal  of  a  crime,  still  we 
may  be  sure  that  God  will  not  fail  to  keep  his  word,  to 
punish  the  wicked,  and  reward  the  righteous.   We  should 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        87 

therefore,  at  all  times,  so  conduct  ourselves  as  to  deserve 
the  blessings  intended  for  the  righteous. 

TWELFTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  the 
Messiah  will  come,  and,  although  his  coming 
be  delayed,  I  will  still  patiently  await  his 
appearance. 

In  this  article  we  express  our  hope  and  belief  that  the 
Redeemer  will  come  at  the  time  appointed,  which  is  only 
known  to  the  Almighty  Himself.  He  will  gather  the 
Israelites  together,  and  restore  the  kingdom  of  the  house 
of  David.  The  Messiah  will  be  out  of  the  stem  of 
Jesse,  of  the  seed  of  David,  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord 
shall  rest  upon  him.  When  the  Messiah  shall  come,  all 
nations  shall  acknowledge  one  Almighty  God,  who 
created  the  world  and  all  its  inhabitants. 

On  that  day,  when  it  shall  please  the  Almighty  to  send 
the  Messiah  to  redeem  us,  all  people  will  live  in  peace 
and  harmony  with  each  other;  every  one  will  enjoy  per- 
fect happiness,  and  we  shall  all  proclaim  the  name  of 
the  Lord  our  God,  forever  and  ever.     Amen. 

THIRTEENTH    CREED. 

I  believe,  with  a  perfect  faith,  that  there  will 
be  a  resurrection  of  the  dead,  at  the  time  when 
it  shall  please  the  Creator,  blessed  and  exalted 
be  his  name,  forever  and  ever.     Amen. 

In  this  article  we  declare  our  true  and  firm  belief, 
that  at  the  end  of  time,  those  who  now  sleep  in  the  dust 
will  awake!,  that  the  dead  will  return  to  life.  Rewards 
and  punishments  are  not  confined  to  this  world;  our 
body  dies  and  rots  in  the  earth,  but  our  soul,  which  is 
immortal,  never  dies;  for  the  soul  is  spiritual,  and 
returns  unto  God,  who  gave  it.  A  time  will  come,  when 
those  sleep  in  the  dust  shall  awake,  some  to  everlasting 
life  and  happiness,  and  others  to  eternal  shame.  They 
that  are  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  heavens, 


88        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness,  shall  be  as 
the  stars  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen.  The  Almighty,  in 
a  vision,  showed  to  Ezekiel,  the  prophet,  that  a  resurrec- 
tion of  the  dead  will  certainly  take  place,  when  it  shall 
please  His  divine  will  to  direct  it ;  and  He  gave  to  the 
prophet  the  following  sign  of  resurrection :  "Thus  said 
the  Lord  unto  these  bones,  'Behold,  I  will  cause  breath 
to  enter  into  you,  and  ye  shall  live' ;  and  then  I  beheld, 
lo,  the  sinews  and  the  flesh  came  up  upon  them,  and  the 
skin  covered  them  above,  and  the  breath  came  into  them, 
and  they  lived  and  stood  upon  their  feet."  When  this 
awful  period  shall  come,  all  mankind  will  be  alike 
brought  to  judgment !  as  the  prophet  "^aitt  Malachi  has 
prophesied.  "Then  shall  he  return,  and  discern  between 
the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  between  him  that  serveth 
God,  and  him  that  serveth  Him  not." 

These  are  the  thirteen  articles  of  our  belief,  upon 
which  we  firmly  fix  our  faith.  If  we  carefully  examine 
them,  we  shall  be  convinced  of  their  excellence,  and 
that  they  are  important  toward  rendering  us  prosperous 
and  happy  in  this  world,  and  deserving  the  bliss  of  the 
world  to  come.  When  we  observe  the  order  in  which  they 
are  arranged,  we  cannot  fail  to  be  inspired  with  heartfelt 
gratitude  to  the  learned  and  pious  "pfcifc  "p  n©&  W 
commonly  called  Rambam,  or  Maimonides,  who,  anxious 
for  the  spiritual  welfare  of  his  nation,  has  comprised  the 
whole  of  the  Jewish  creed  into  these  thirteen  articles, 
commencing  with  the  acknowledgment  of  the  existence  of 
a  God,  and  gradually  progressing,  till  he  closes  with  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead  from  the  grave,  to  receive  judg- 
ment from  the  hand  of  the  great  Author  of  ail  nature. 

Grant,  O  God!  that  Thy  law  may  ever  be  read  and 
studied  by  us,  that  we  may  thereby  become  wise ;  that 
we  may  ever  be  impressed  with  Thy  unceasing  goodness 
to  all  mankind;  and  that,  by  strictly  adhering  to  the 
wholsome  rules  of  life  laid  down  in  Thy  law,  for  our  use 
and  guidance,  we  may  deserve  Thy  grace  while  here  on 
earth,  and  share  the  bliss  reserved  for  the  righteous  in 
the  world  to  come.     Amen. 


A  LIST 

OF  THE 

MONTHS  OF  THE  JEWISH  YEAE, 

CONTAINING  AN 

ACCOUNT  OF  EVERY  FAST  AND  FESTIVAL 
OCCURING  IN  EACH  MONTH, 

TOGETHER  WITH 

A  FULL  EXPLANATION"  OF  THE  ORIGIN  AND  REASON 
OF  THEIR  INSTITUTION. 


The  Jewish  year  is  divided  into  twelve  months,  and 
every  third  year  another  month  is  added,  which  is  called 
*n*1  or  ^B  *rm  which  signifies  Second  Adur. 

The  year  that  has  thirteen  months  is  called  Wffl  "iin? 
Leap  Year.* 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  months : 

jVD  T^  jD\3 

*rm  £?$  rac 


*See   pages  70  and  71  for  a  full  explanation  of  the  Jewish 
Months  and  Years. 


S'J 


90  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 

The  first  month  is  called  p^3,  because  in  this  month 
the  childern  of  Israel  were  brought  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt.  In  order  therefore  to  distinguish  this  month 
more  particularly,  it  is  placed  at  the  head  or  beginning 
of  the  months,  as  it  is  written  in  the  Holy  Bible. 

u  This  month  shall  be  to  you  the  first  of  months;  it 
shall  be  to  you  the  first  of  ail  months  of  the  year." 

Neson  has  always  thirty  days,  from  about  the 
twentieth  day  of  March  to  the  eigteenth  day  of  April. 
The  fourteenth  day  of  this  month  is  called  not)  ms  the 
day  before  Passover.  All  bread,  beer  or  any  liquors 
made  of  grain,  must  be  removed  from  the  house,  as  also 
all  vessels  which  may  have  been  used  for  these  things. 

In  the  evening  of  the  fourteenth  day,  the  festival  of 
noB  Passover  begins,  and  continues  eight  days ;  during 
these  eight  days  no  leaven  of  any  kind  is  allowed  to  be 
eaten,  or  used  for  any  purpose.  The  Festival  of 
Passover  is  also  called  rns&n  sn  Feast  of  unleavened 
Cakes.  Previously  to  the  destruction  of  our  Hoh 
Temple  in  Jerusalem,  the  Passover  lamb  was  offered  up 
in  the  afternoon  of  no&  nns  with  much  joy  and  gladness, 
and  it  was  eaten  in  the  evening  in  each  family. 

The  first  two,  and  the  last  two  days  of  the  Festival 
must  be  kept  holy,  and  sacred  to  the  Lord.  On  these 
days  we  must  hot  do  any  work,  or  attend  to  any  business 
whatever;  they  must  be  kept  as  strictly  as  the  Sabbath. 
The  four  middle  days  are  called  iTuati  bin. 

On  these  days  we  are  allowed  to  work  and  follow  our 
occupation,  restricting  ourselves  to  the  performance  of 
such  things  only  as  are  absolutely  requisite. 

The  Festival  of  Passover  is  ordained  to  commemorate 
the  goodness  of  the  Almighty  in  having  heard  the  cries 
of  the  children  of  Israel  when  cruelly  persecuted  by  the 
Egyptians. 

And  the  Lord  sent  Moses  to  deliver  the  children  of 
Israel  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  from  slavery  and  hard 
bondage,  to  bring  them  into  a  land  flowing  with  milk 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        91 

and  honey,  namely,  the  land  of  Canaan,  as  promised  to 
our  pious  forefather  Abraham. 

On  no&  ai5  every  first-born  son  must  fast,  in  grati- 
tude to  the  Almighty,  who,  when  he  slew  all  the  first- 
born of  the  Egyptians,  on  the  night  that  our  forefathers 
left  Egypt,  passed  over  all  the  nouses  of  the  Israelites, 
and  not  one  of  them  was  slain,  or  even  hurt. 

The  Sabbath  before  the  Passover  is  called  5™n  rfira 
"the  great  Sabbath"  because,  this  day  happened  to  be 
the  tenth  day  of  the  month,  when  God  commanded  the 
children  of  Israel  to  take,  every  one,  a  lamb  in  the  sight 
of  the  Egyptians.  And  as  the  Egyptians  worshipped 
the  lamb  as  their  God,  it  may  be  supposed  that  they 
would  have  punished  the  Israelites  for  the  slaughter  of 
that  animal ;  but  they  did  not  venture  to  hurt  them, 
although  they  saw  them  take  the  lamb  to  kill.  We 
have  therefore  ever  considered  this  to  be  one  of  the  great 
miracles  which  the  Almighty  wrought  for  our  forefathers 
in  Egypt;  and  we,  accordingly,  hold  this  inan  too  as  a 
very  sacred  day. 

CEREMONY     OF    THE     TWO     FIRST    NIGHTS    OF    fiOS    PASS- 
OVER,   TERMED    THE    VJD. 

On  the  first  two  nights  of  nos,  the  table  being  prepared 
as  usual  on  Sabbath  and  Festivals,  three  plates  are  put 
thereon;  in  one  is  placed  three  mxfc  Passover  cakes; 
in  another,  the  shank  bone  of  the  shoulder  of  a  lamb, 
and  an  egg  roasted ;  and  in  the  third,  is  put  some  cher- 
vil or  parsley,  and  horse-radish ;  as  also  a  cup  of  vine- 
gar or  salt  water,  and  a  mixture  of  apples,  almonds,  and 
cinnamon,  which  is  called  noun. 

The  bone  of  the  lamb  is  in  memory  of  the  no&  pip 
" Passover  Offering."  The  Egg  is  to  remind  us  of  the 
m^n  pnp  the  offering  in  honor  of  the  Festival.  The 
bitter  herbs  are  eaten  because  the  Egyptians  made  our 
ancestors'  lives  bitter  by  slavery  in  Egypt.  The  noinn 
is  in  memory  of  the  bricks  and  mortar  used  by  the 
people  in  Egypt.  The  table  being  thus  laid,  every  one 
of  the  family  is  seated,  and  each  has  a  glass  of  wine 


92        A    CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

before  him.  On  this  night  every  one  at  table  drinks 
four  glasses  of  wine,  commonly  called  filtTD  y^xfour 
cups,  or  glasses. 

The  master  of  the  house  then  begins  the  imn  which 
relates  the  redemption  of  our  forefathers  from  Egypt, 
and  contains  praises  and  thanksgivings  to  the  gracious 
God,  for  his  kindness  and  mercy. 

On  these  two  nights  all  Hebrew  servants  are  allowed 
to  sit  at  table,  during  the  ceremony,  because,  we  were 
all  equally  in  bondage,  and  therefore  it  is  proper  that 
every  one  of  us  should  return  thanks  to  God  for  his 
goodness,  in  delivering  us  from  a  state  of  slavery. 

During  the  time  the  Holy  Temple  stood  in  Jerusalem, 
a  sheaf  of  the  first  ripe  corn  was  offered  up  to  the  Lord 
on  the  sixteenth  day  of  the  month  "p^  which  is  the  second 
day  of  the  Passover,  and  from  that  day  fifty  days  were 
ordered  to  be  counted  until  the  Festival  of  rwnra  Pen- 
tecost, or  Feast  of  Weeks.  In  memory  of  this  we  attend 
the  Synagogue  every  evening  from  the  second  night  of 
TO5  until  mynrc  and  count  the  days,  and  say  the  bless- 
ing of  the  ^itoW  this  is  what  is  called  the  ^ifriSt  meaning 
a  measure  of  corn,  which  was  brought  as  an  offering  to 
the  Lord. 

TO 

T  ' 

The  second  month  is  called  ^a  Eyor.  It  has  always 
twenty-nine  days,  from  about  the  nineteenth  day  of 
April  to  the  seventeenth  day  of  May.  The  eighteenth 
day  ,of  this  month  is  known  by  the  name  of  ^itoisn  3b  the 
thirty-third  day  of  the  counting  of  the  Oumer. 

This  day  is  held  as  a  holiday  among  the  scholars;  it 
is  properly  called  the  Scholars' Feast,  because  it  is  said, 
that  in  the  time  of  va^py  *%h  (a  learned  Rabbi),  there 
was  a  plague  which  destroyed  a  great  many  of  his  pupils. 
This  plague  ceased  on  "lfr^n  sb  and,  therefore,  this  day 
is  held  as  the  Scholars'  feast. 

In  this  month  the  three  fast  days  are  held,  called 
hHDit  "iirrarit  ^ej  viz.,  Monday,  Thursday,  and  the  fol- 
lowing Monday. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        93 

These  fasts  have  been  ordered  by  our  wise  men  to 
take  place  shortly  after  the  festival  of  no&,  to  atone  for 
any  neglect  of  duty  to  God  during  the  period  of  our 
festivity.  These  days  have  therefore  been  directed  to 
be  held  as  fast  days,  on  which  we  add  the  prayers  called 
rnmio  supplications  for  forgiveness. 

"^ej  means,  the  second  day  of  the  week,  Monday. 

W»&n  the  fifth  day,  Thursday. 

"Oeti  and  the  following  Monday. 

The  third  month  is  called  •yvifc  which  has  always  thirty 
days,  from  about  the  eighteenth  day  of  May  to  the  six- 
teenth day  of  June. 

On  the  sixth  and  seventh  days  of  this  month  we  ce- 
lebrate the  Festival  of  Pentecost,  or  Feast  of  Weeks. 

This  feast  is  called  tTOlM  or  Weeks,  from  its  being 
reckoned  by  the  weeks.  Forty-nine  days,  or  seven 
complete  weeks,  are  counted  from  the  second  night  of 
ns&  and  on  the  fiftieth  day,  the  festival  of  msims  com- 
mences, which  is  the  evening  of  the  fifth  day  of  the 
month  yn&. 

The  first  day  of  Pentecost  is  also  the  memorable  day 
on  which  the  great  God  appeared  on  Mount  Sinai,  and 
gave  to  our  ancestors  the  imn  Holy  Law. 

This  took  place  in  the  third  month  after  their  de- 
parture from  Egypt. 

It  is  customary  for  religious  persons  to  employ  the 
first  night  of  msnSTD  in  reading  certain  portions  of  the 
Bible  and  the  Mishna,  together,  with  prayers  composed 
for  the  occasion,  in  gratitude  to  God  for  having  given 
us  His  holy  law,  which  teaches  us  to  do  all  that  is  good. 

riW-E  is  also  called  ^Xpfl  sn  Harvest  Feast,  because 
in  Palestine  the  harvest  commenced  directly  after  the 
Passover.  It  is  also  called  tPTMn  tn^  the  day  of  the 
first  ripe  fruits,  because,  on  this  day,  the  first  fruits 
were  brought  as  an  offering  in  the  Temple. 

The  three  days,  immediately  preceding  msnsd,  are 


91        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

called  rtuft  W  tmfyti  "the  three  days  of  bordering;" 
because  Moses,  our  law-giver,  was  directed  by  the  Al- 
mighty to  border  the  Mount,  and  to  caution  the  people 
not  to  come  near  to  it,  and  to  prepare  themselves  for  the 
event  at  the  end  of  three  days. 

The  fourth  month  is  called  nfcn  which  has  always 
twenty-nine  days,  from  about  the  seventeenth  day  of 
June  to  the  fifteenth  day  of  July.  On  the  seventeenth 
day  of  this  month  is  held  a  fast  called  rartt  ^2  \XRXB* 
This  fast  is  held  in  commemoration  of  the  dreadful 
sufferings  of  our  forefathers  in  Jerusalem.  On  this  day 
Jerusalem  was  taken  by  the  Romans,  just  before  the 
destruction  of  the  second  Temple  ;  and  it  was  on  this 
day,  that  Moses  broke  the  mml  tables  of  stone  (on 
which  were  written  the  Ten  Commandments)  when  he 
came  down  from  the  Mount  (where  he  had  been  forty 
days  and  forty  nights),  and  saw  the  people  of  Israel 
worshipping  the  molten  calf. 

The  fifth  month  is  called  na  which  has  thirty  days, 
from  about  the  sixteenth  of  July  to  the  fourteenth  of 
August.  On  the  ninth  day  of  this  month,  a  solemn  fast 
is  held,  called  nan  rttran.  This  fast  is  held  in  memory 
of  the  destruction  of  the  first  and  second  Temples,  which 
occured  on  the  very  same  day,  in  the  month  of  Av.  On 
both  these  occasions,  our  nation  was  very  cruelly  treated 
by  the  enemy.  Thousands  of  the  people  perished  at  the 
destruction  of  the  Temples,  by  famine,  captivity,  and 
the  sword.  This  ninth  day  of  3*  is  mournfully  dis- 
tinguished as  the  fatal  day  when  all  the  glory  of  our 
nation  was  overthrown,  the  Temples  were  burnt,  and 
the  people  were  carried  into  captivity  to  Babylon,  and 
other  places  ;  and  thus  the  Jewish  kingdom  was  entirely 
destroyed.  Aware  of  the  extent  of  our  loss,  and  sensible 
that  the  nation  deserved  such  a  punishment,  for  the 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR    JEWISH   YOUTH  95 

many  crimes  which  they  had  committed,  although  repeat- 
edly warned  by  the  prophets  of  the  Lord  to  repent,  and 
cease  to  do  evil,  we  at  this  day  continue  to  lament  the 
loss  of  our  country,  and  the  extinction  of  our  glory  ;  and 
every  year,  the  ninth  day  of  the  month  na  is  kept  as  a 
principal  day  of  mourning,  and  fasting,  and  praying  to 
God,  that  he  will  restore  us  to  our  former  station,  in  the 
land  of  our  forefathers. 

The  fast  begins  on  the  evening  of  the  ninth  day, 
when  the  book  of  tWVk  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah,  is  read 
in  the  synagogue.  The  Lamentations  called  ritnp  are 
also  read  in  the  morning,  together  with  other  prayers, 
composed  for  the  occasion. 

After  this  day  the  month  is  usually  called  na  fcrttfo 
particularly  when  we  date  a  letter,  ortitt  signifies 
Comforter.  The  Sabbath  after  nan  ft$m  is  called  rOD 
l&na  the  Sabbath  of  Comfort. 

The  fifteenth  day  of  this  month  is  known  by  the  name 
of  nan  *w$  ffiDfen.  This  was  formerly  kept  as  a  day  of 
feasting  among  the  young.  The  young  females  of  the 
Israelites  formerly  kept  this  as  a  day  of  merry-making, 
with  dancing  and  other  amusements,  in  memory  of  the 
cessation  of  the  war  between  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  and 
all  the  other  tribes  of  Israel,  which  was  pacifically 
settled  among  them  by  the  young  females.  The  history 
of  this  transaction  is  to  be  found  in  the  last  two  chapters 
of  the  Book  of  Judges. 

The  sixth  month  is  called  biba  which  has  always 
twenty-nine  days,  from  about  the  fifteenth  of  August  to 
the  twelfth  of  September. 

In  the  computation  from  the  creation  of  the  world, 
this  is  the  last  month  of  the  year;  but  from  the  month 
of  10*13  it  is  only  the  sixth  month.  On  the  first  day  of 
this  month,  we  begin  to  blow  the  ^bliD  Trumpet,  in  order 
to  remind  the  people  that  the  new  year  is  approaching, 
and  that  they  shall  repent  of  the  sins  which  they  may 
have  committed  during  the  past  year.  The  days  during 


96        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

the  last  week  of  this  month  are  called  nrrtDrt  W  days 
of  supplication  for  forgiveness  of  sin. 

Additional  prayers  called  mrrbD  are  read  in  the 
synagogue  at  the  break  of  day.  Many  persons  fast  on 
these  days ;  thus  closing  the  year  with  true  devotion 
and  repentance. 

The  seventh  month  is  called  ^on  which  has  always 
thirty  days,  from  about  the  thirteenth  day  of  September 
to  the  twelfth  of  October. 

On  the  first  and  second  days  of  this  month  is  held 
the  festival  of  rran  E&n  New  Year's  day.  This  is  the 
beginning  of  the  new  year ;  for,  as  the  month  of  *p^3  is 
the  head  or  beginning  of  the  months,  so  is  ^litofr.  the 
head  or  beginning  of  the  year. 

tiivr]  torn  is  called  in  the  Bible  ]ir&t[  tn*>  "a  day  of 
memorial  "  signifying,  that  we  should  call  to  mind  our 
actions  during  the  past  year,  and  pray  to  the  Lord  to 
pardon  our  sins. 

It  is  also  called  rwin  tfn  "a  day  of  blowing  of  trum- 
pets "  as  recorded  in  the  Bible :  "And  in  the  seventh 
month,  on  the  first  day  of  the  month,  ye  shall  have  a 
holy  convocation,  ye  shall  do  no  servile  work  ;  it  is  a 
day  of  blowing  the  trumpets." 

mm  E*n  is  also  called  \*rth  fc-p  a  day  of  trial  to  our 
souls.  Respecting  this  day,  our  wise  men  have  said, 
This  is  the  day  on  which  the  world  was  brought  into 
existence ;  this  is  the  day  on  which  the  Great  God  causes 
all  his  creatures  to  stand  in  judgment  before  him. 

n:rn  xx^  must  be  kept  as  sacred  as  tQB.  No  work 
of  any  kind  may  be  done.  This  day  is  the  first  of  th< 
nrrrn  *W  mir?  ten  days  of  penitence;  during  whicl 
time,  we  should  repent,  and  confess  our  sins ;  and  wt 
earnestly  pray  to  the  Almighty,  that  he  will  write  us  ii 
in  the  book  of  life,  and  grant  us  a  happy  new  year. 

The  days  from  pe»n  E&n  till  after  "fi&lD  dvi  are  called 
s^aTtt  tra*1  awful  days,  or  days  of  reverence. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        97 

The  Sabbath  between  hM&n  E&n  and  "1155  tn^  is  called 
miED  tpffl  the  Sabbath  of  Penitence,  it  being  one  of 
the  ten  days  of  repentance. 

The  third  day  of  "nran  is  a  general  fast,  called  tnsr 
lii^inn  the  fast  of  Gedaliah,  in  memory  of  the  murder 
of  that  pious  man.  Gedaliah  was  the  son  of  Ahikam, 
whom  .Nebuchadnezzar,  king  of  Babylon,  had  made  the 
chief  of  the  Israelites  who  remained  in  their  own  country, 
after  the  destruction  of  the  first  Temple.  Gedaliah  was 
on  this  day  slain  with  many  of  his  friends,  by  Ishmael. 
We  therefore  continue  to  deplore  the  loss  of  that  great 
man,  by  fasting  and  lamenting  every  year,  on  the  third 
day  of  the  month  ^rati  being  the  day  on  which  Gedaliah 
was  slain,  as  already  mentioned. 

TIB?  UV 

DAY   OF    ATONEMENT. 

The  tenth  day  of  vron  is  called  t^Ti&sn  tfn  Day  of 
Atonement ;  it  is  the  last  of  the  ten  days  of  penitence. 
On  this  day,  as  commanded  in  our  holy  law,  a  solemn 
fast  is  decreed  for  the  pardon  of  sin,  to  all  those  who 
are  sincere  and  true  in  their  repentance.  This  solemn 
fast  is  held  on  the  tenth  day  of  this  seventh  month 
**\xt\  from  the  evening  of  the  ninth  day  to  the  evening 
of  the  tenth  day. 

This  day  is  considered  the  most  holy  day  in  the  year; 
it  is  set  apart  entirely  for  fasting,  praying  and  repen- 
tance, as  it  is  related  in  the  Holy  Bible.  "On  the  tenth 
day  of  the  seventh  month,  is  the  Day  of  Atonement ;  it 
shall  be  to  you  a  day  of  holy  convocation ;  and  ye  shall 
afflict  your  souls  (by  fasting).  Ye  shall  do  no  work  on 
that  same  day  ;  for  it  is  a  day  of  atonement,  on  which 
ye  shall  be  pardoned  before  the  Eternal,  your  God. 
It  shall  be  to  you  a  complete  day  of  rest,  and  ye  shall 
afflict  your  souls  (by  fasting).  On  the  evening  of  the 
ninth  day  ye  shall  begin,  and  keep  your  resting-day 
until  the  next  evening."  So  sacredly  is  this  day  to  be 
9 


93        A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

observed,  that  we  may  not  even  wear  our  shoes,  nor 
wash  or  refresh  ourselves,  as  on  other  days. 

During  the  period  of  the  existence  of  the  Holy  Temple 
in  Jerusalem,  this  TiM  t3"n  day  of  Atonement,  was  a  day 
of  great  solemnity;  the  whole  nation  was  fasting  and 
praying ;  the  Holy  Temple  was  attended  by  the  n^ns 
priests,  who  were  engaged  in  their  duties;  and  the  d*nb 
Levites,  who  were  occupied  in  singing  praises  to  the 
Almighty.  Ties  fc-n  was  the  only  day  in  the  year  when 
the  inan  yte,  high  priest,  was  allowed  to  enter  the 
fc-iimpn  imp  the  most  holy  place  in  the  Temple. 

The  high  priest  had  very  sacred  duties  to  perform  on 
this  day:  he  had  to  offer  the  sacrifices,  as  commanded 
in  the  Holy  Bible ;  to  pray  for  himself  and  his  family, 
as  well  as  for  the  whole  congregation,  before  the  altar 
of  the  Most  High  God,  the  gracious  Judge  of  mankind. 
The  ceremonies  of  the  day  were  peculiarly  grand,  solemn 
and  sacred ;  and  great  was  the  anxiety  of  the  people, 
who  crowded  the  courts  of  the  Temple,  to  listen  with 
attention  to  the  prayers  of  the  high  priest ;  and  at  the 
conclusion  of  every  prayer,  when  the  most  holy  name  of 
the  Great  God  was  pronounced  by  the  high  priest,  the 
whole  nation  fell  upon  their  faces,  exclaiming : 

IDS  Utf  TJfQ 

vt  t        :  :  - 

" Blessed  be  the  name  of  his  glorious  kingdom,  for  ever 
and  ever." 

And  when  the  comforting  word  *nnt:n  ye  are  pure, 
*was  heard  from  the  mouth  of  the"  high  priest,  every  heart 
rejoiced,  and  was  happy.  At  night  the  people  returned 
home,  grateful  to  the  Almighty,  who  had  again  received 
them  into  his  favor,  and  pardoned  their  sins.  Alas  !  at 
present  we  are  deprived  of  all  this  glory,  for  we  cannot 
offer  sacrifices  in  any  place,  except  the  Holy  Land.  We 
therefore  remain  the  whole  of  the  day  "ABO  ti^  in  our 
synagogues,  praying  and  fasting,  and  imploring  God's 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH        99 

mercy  to  favor  us  with  pardon  for  all  our  past  sins,  and 
to  be  kind  to  us  for  ever.     Amen. 

^vi&Id  tm  is  also  a  day  for  reconciliation  and  peace- 
making between  man  and  man,  for  no  one  can  expect  to 
be  forgiven  by  the  Almighty,  unless  he  be  in  amity  and1 
concord  with  his  fellow  creature.    Then,  and  then  only, 
can  he  hope  for  pardon  from  the  Almighty. 

FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES. 

On  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  month  Titan,  commences 
the  festival  of  mso  tabernacles.  It  is  also  called  3n 
1^D»n  the  festival  of  gathering  in  the  harvest,  when  all 
trie  wine,  oil,  and  all  the  fruits  were  formerly  housed, 
with  grateful  acknowledgments  to  the  Almighty,  who 
provides  for  our  wants  in  every  season  of  the  year. 

The  festival  of  mSD  is  so  called,  because,  when  our 
ancestors  came  out  of  Egypt,  they  journeyed  forty  years 
in  the  desert,  dwelling  in  booths  or  huts  during  that 
period,  until  their  arrival  at  the  promised  land,  Canaan. 

The  festival  of  Tabernacles  begins  on  the  eve  of  the 
fourteenth  day  of  the  month  ^Ejn  and  continues  alto- 
gether nine  days,  in  the  following  manner : 

The  first  two  days  are  held  sacred,  and  called  Holy 
Convocations.  The  five  middle  days  are  called  Wfrn  bin. 

The  seventh  day  is  called  &o^  ausirhn  which  is  es- 
teemed more  sacred  than  the  other  days  of  nsifcn  h*\n. 

The  eighth  day  is  called  rms  TnfrE  Solemn  Assembly, 
or  Conclusion  Feast. 

The  ninth  and  last  day  is  called  rmn  nn&B  the 
rejoicing  of  the  law. 

In  the  Holy  Bible  it  is  commanded,  that  on  the 
fifteenth  day  of  the  seventh  month,  shall  be  held  the 
feast  of  tabernacles  unto  the  Lord.  "And  ye  shall  take 
you  on  the  first  day,  the  boughs  of  goodly  trees,  and 
branches  of  palm  trees,  the  boughs  of  thick  trees,  and 
willows  of  the  brook,  and  ye  shall  rejoice  before  the  Lord 
your  God  seven  days.     Ye  shall  dwell  in  booths  seven 


100  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOCJTH 

days,  that  your  generations  may  know  that  I  made  the 
children  of  Israel  to  dwell  in  booths,  when  1  brought 
them  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  I  am  the  Lord  your 
God."  -)T,  y 

In  commemoration  of  the  children  of  Israel  having 
lived  in  booths  in  the  wilderness,  and  in  gratitude  to 
God  for  his  goodness  to  our  forefathers,  in  sheltering 
them  in  the  waste  desert,  we  at  this  day,  during  the 
seven  days  of  ms&  dwell  in  booths,  erected  for  that 
purpose,  which  we  call  Succous.  It  is  ordered,  that  on 
mso  we  are  to  take  of  the  fruit  of  the  beautiful  tree, 
this  is  the  mina  Citron.  Branches  of  palm  trees,  which 
we  call  illb.  Branches  of  the  three-leaved  myrtle, 
t^Din ;  and  willows  of  the  brook,  called  m^3>.  These 
four  kinds  are  used  during  the  seven  days  of  mso  when 
we  say  hhn  in  the  synagogue,  praising  the  Lord  in  honor 
of  the  festival. 

During  the  middle  days  called  Wttfi  bin  we  are 
allowed  to  attend  to  business,  and  to  follow  our  occu- 
pation as  our  means  of  subsistence,  restricting  ourselves 
to  the  performance  of  such  things  as  are  absolutely 
requisite. 

The  seventh  day  is  called  Hffi  anSBin  which  is  kept 
more  strictly  than  the  other  days  of  isittn  bin.  On  this 
day  we  pray  to  the  Almighty,  that  the  rain  from  heaven 
may  tend  to  make  the  earth  fruitful;  at  the  same  time 
we  thank  and  praise  the  Almighty,  who  has  not  suffered 
the  fruits  of  the  earth  to  be  parched  for  want  of  water. 

It  is  customary  for  religious  persons  to  employ  the 
night  of  am  a^mn  in  reading  the  whole  of  the  Book  of 
Deuteronomy,  as  also  the  whole  of  the  Psalms,  together 
with  prayers  suitable  for  the  occasion,  hoping  that  we 
may  have  been  forgiven  of  the  sins  we  may  have  com- 
mitted during  the  past  year;  and  supplicating  the  Deity, 
in  his  mercy,  to  grant  us  life,  peace,  and  happiness 
during  the  new  year. 

The  eighth  day  is  called  rm?  WOT  Solemn  Assembly, 
or  conclusion  of  the  feast.  uOn  the  eighth  day,  ye  shall 
have  the  feast  of  conclusion,  and  on  it  ye  shall  do  no 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       101 

manner  of  work."  This  day  must  also  be  kept  as  sacred 
as  the  first  days.  On  this  day  we  humbly  pray  to  God  for 
rain  to  cherish  the  produce  of  the  earth,  for  the  sustenance 
of  his  creatures. 

The  ninth  and  the  last  day  of  the  festival  is  called 
rmn  nnftD  the  Rejoicing  of  the  Law.  On  this  day  we 
read  the  last  section  of  the  Law,  and  then  immediately 
commence  a  part  of  the  first  section.  We  rejoice  in  the 
holy  law  with  which  the  Almighty  has  favored  us,  which 
points  out  to  us  the  road  to  happiness  in  this  world,  and 
eternal  bliss  hereafter.  The  person  who  is  called  to  the 
reading  of  the  last  portion  on  this  day  is  termed  mitr^n. 
And  he  who  is  called  to  the  reading  of  the  first  portion 
of  Genesis,  is  designated  fi^z^n  "pn. 

The  Sabbath  immediately  following  mm  nnfcE  is 
known  by  the  name  of  r^rama  rati. 

]pn  or  ]wrr\D  ■ 

The  eighth  month  is  called  \WI  or  inurnfr.  It  has 
sometimes  twenty-nine,  and  at  other  times  thirty  days, 
from  about  the  thirteenth  of  October  to  the  twelfth  of 
November. 

In  this  month  three  fasts  are  held,  called  ^fcri  *m 
^ffll  Monday,  Thursday,  and  the  following  Monday. 
These  fasts  have  been  ordered  by  our  wise  men  to  take 
place  shortly  after  the  festival  of  mso*  lest,  during  the 
festival,  we  should  have  been  occasionally  unmindful  of 
our  duty  to  God.  These  days  have  therefore  been  di- 
rected to  be  held  as  fast  days,  on  which  we  add  the 
prayers  called  mrrto  supplication  for  forgiveness. 

*™  means  the  second  day  of  the  week,  Monday. 

iBn&n  the  fifth  day,  Thursday ,  and  tho  second  tWO 
signifies  the  following  Monday. 


fe 


The   ninth  month   is  called  lio3>  it  has  sometimes 
twenty-nine,  and  at  other  times  thirty  days,  from  about 


102       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

the  thirteenth  day   of  November  to  the  eleventh  of 
December. 

On  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  this  month,  in  the  evening, 
the  feast  of  ran  commences,  and  continues  for  eight 
days.  During  the  time  of  the  second  temple,  Antiochus, 
a  tyrant  of  the  Greek  nation,  cruelly  oppressed  the 
Jews,  not  only  in  Palestine,  but  wherever  they  were 
subjected  to  his  power,  irmrift  Mattathias,  the  High 
Priest  of  the  family  of  ^Ofcrrn  Hoshmounoy,  together  with 
his  sons,  combined  with  others  to  resist  this  tyrant. 
They  defeated  the  Grecian  army,  and  restored  in  the 
Temple  the  holy  worship  of  God,  which  had  for  some 
time  been  forbidden  by  the  cruel  Antiochus.  When  the 
temple  was  re-opened,  and  consecrated  for  the  worship 
of  God,  the  oil  used  for  the  ?TYi3fc  golden  candlestick  was 
found  to  be  very  deficient  in  quantity,  and  scarcely 
enough  to  suffice  for  one  day's  service,  the  Greeks  hav- 
ing defiled  the  greater  part.  This  small  quantity,  how- 
ever, by  a  miracle  of  the  Almighty,  continued  to  burn 
for  eight  days,  when  fresh  oil  was  procured.  In  com- 
memoration of  this  we,  every  year,  on  the  twenty-fourth 
day  of  the  month  ibtt>  at  night,  commence  burning  a 
taper,  or  light  called  ran  light,  adding  another  for  every 
evening,  until  the  conclusion  of  the  festival;  and  we  say 
bin  every  day,  praising  the  Lord  for  all  the  miracles 
which  he  has  wrought  for  us,  and  for  the  favors  he  has 
ever  bestowed  on  us. 

The  tenth  month  is  called  too  which  has  always 
twenty-nine  days,  from  about  the  twelfth  day  of  De- 
cember to  the  ninth  of  January. 

On  the  tenth  day  of  this  month  is  held  a  fast  day, 
called  FQtaa  rfflBSi  because  on  this  day  Nebuchadnezzar, 
king  of  Babylon,  began  the  siege  of  Jerusalem  during 
the  existence  of  the  first  temple.  This  event  may  be 
considered  the  fatal  beginning  of  all  the  troubles  and 
miseries  that  befell  our  nation,  and  in  memory  of  this, 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       103 

we,  every  year,  on  the  tenth  day  of  tinto  fast,  and  lament 
our  loss ;  and  we  say  the  prayers  called  mrp^a  composed 
for  the  occasion. 

The  eleventh  month  is  called  toM  and  has  always 
thirty  days,  from  about  the  tenth  day  of  January  to 
the  eighth  of  February.  The  fifteenth  day  of  this  month 
is  celebrated  as  mA^ai  row  ©8**1  New  Year's  Day  for 
the  trees,  it  being  generally  supposed  that  on  this  day 
they  receive  fresh  sap. 

It  is  customary  for  the  pious  amongst  us  to  assemble 
on  the  eve  of  the  fifteenth  of  this  month,  and  to  collect 
various  kinds  of  fruits,  over  which  they  pronounce  a 
blessing,  and  offer  their  praises  in  gratitude  to  the  Al- 
mighty, who  so  graciously  regulates  everything  to  grow 
in  its  proper  season,  for  our  use  and  benefit. 

t  -: 

The  twelfth  month  is  called  'VTH  which  has,  in  a  regu- 
lar year,  only  twenty-nine  days,  but  in  a  leap  year  it 
has  thirty  days,  from  about  the  ninth  day  of  February 
to  the  tenth  day  of  March. 

In  a  leap  year  the  thirteenth  month  is  called  lira  *n» 
Second  Adur,  which  has  always  twenty-nine  days. 

The  thirteenth  day  of  the  month  *na  is  held  as  a  fast 
day  called  'nriDa  n^Sti  the  fast  of  Esther,  in  commemo- 
ration of  the  fast  instituted  by  Queen  Esther.  If  the 
thirteenth  of  Adur  happens  to  be  on  the  Sabbath,  the 
the  fast  is  held  on  the  previous  Thursday. 

The  fourteenth  of  Adur  is  a  day  of  rejoicing  called 
t^TiS  in  memory  of  the  great  deliverance  of  our  nation 
from  the  cruel  hands  of  the  wicked  Haman,  who  had 
appointed  this  day  for  the  destruction  of  all  the  Jews  in 
the  kingdom  of  Persia,  but  through  the  agency  of  the 
pious  Mordecai,  and  Queen  Esther,  and  by  the  goodness 
and  mercy  of  God,  this  day,  instead  of  being  a  day  of 
sorrow  to  the  children  of  Israel,  became  a  day  of  joy 


104       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

and  thanksgiving.  In  the  evening  of  the  thirteenth,  and 
in  the  morning  of  the  fourteenth  day  of  Adur,  the  Book 
of  Esther,  containing  the  history  of  Purim,  is  read  in 
the  Synagogue,  from  a  written  roll  of  parchment,  which 
is  called  Megillo.  The  day  is  celebrated  with  feasting 
and  rejoicing.  Also  gifts  are  interchanged,  and  aims 
are  given  to  the  poor,  as  is  stated  in  the  book  of  Esther, 
"Ye  shall  make  them  days  of  feasting  and  rejoicings 
sending  presents  one  to  another ,  and  distributing  gifts  to 
the  poor." 

The  fifteenth  day  of  Adur  is  called  Shushan  Purim. 
This  is  also  held  as  a  day  of  feasting  and  merry-making, 
but  the  Megillo  is  not  read  on  this  day. 

MINOR    DAY    OF   ATONEMENT. 

The  day  before  the  New  Moon,  is  called  *pp  T1&5  tr^ 
a  minor  day  of  atonement.  It  is  customary  for  the  pious 
of  our  nation  to  fast  on  this  day,  and  to  call  themselves 
to  account  for  their  actions  during  the  past  month. 

In  the  afternoon  of  this  day  we  attend  the  Synagogue, 
to  read  the  prayer  of  nrfefc  somewhat  earlier  than  usual, 
on  which  occasion  we  say  mmis  supplications,  suppli- 
cating the  Almighty  to  forgive  our  sins.  This  day  is 
therefore  called  a  minor  day  of  atonement. 

Enn  efth 

NEW    MOON,    OR    FIRST    DAY    OF   THE    MONTH. 

The  first  day  of  the  month  is  called  (as  above)  New 
Moon,  the  first  day  of  every  month  being  reckoned  by 
the  New  Moon.  In  ancient  times,  among  the  Israelites, 
the  appearance  of  the  New  Moon  was  announced  by  the 
blowing  of  trumpets,  and  the  offering  of  a  special  sacri- 
fice; as  described  in  the  Holy  Bible,  in  the  tenth  chapter 
of  the  Book  of  Numbers.  "Also,  in  the  day  of  your 
gladness,  and  in  your  solemn  days,  and  in  the  beginnings 
of  your  months,  ye  shall  blow  with  the  trumpets  over 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       105 

your  burnt  offerings,  and  over  the  sacrifices  of  your  peace- 
offerings,  that  they  may  be  to  you  for  a  memorial  before 
your  God.55 

On  this  day  we  add  the  Psalms  called  bbn  in  our 
morning  prayers,  to  praise  and  glorify  the  Almighty  for 
his  goodness  to  us  at  all  times,  and  at  all  seasons. 

It  sometimes  occurs  that  the  months  have  two  days, 
celebrated  as  the  festival  of  the  New  Moon.  On  these 
occasions  the  same  order  of  prayers  is  observed  as  when 
there  is  but  one  day. 


ntLtshs  ysm 

There  are  four  Sabbaths  previously  to  the  festival  of 
Passover,  which  are  more  particularly  distinguished  than 
the  rest,  and  are  known  by  the  name  of  m^nzna  3>:na  as 
follows : 

•  J  t  :  -     :- 

The  l*ast  Sabbath  in  the  month  EM  is  called  h»^b 
S^bpE .  On  this  day  we  read  that  portion  of  the  rmn 
describing  the  payment  by  the  children  of  Israel,  of 
their  half  shekels,  which  were  small  silver  coins,  collected 
during  the  existence  of  the  Temple,  for  the  purchase  of 
the  daily  sacrifices,  which  were  offered  up  to  the  Lord, 
as  an  atonement  for  sin.  It  was,  therefore,  directed 
that  the  rich  and  the  poor  should  give  equal  portions. 
And,  as  in  the  present  day,  the  shekels  cannot  be  applied 
to  the  purchasing  of  sacrifices,  sums  in  lieu  thereof  are 
collected  and  given  to  the  poor.  This  is  what  is  under- 
stood by  giving  that  which  is  commonly  called  marpa 
ipran  on  the  night  of  t^TiB  before  the  reading  of  the  tiblft. 

niDj  ncsns 

The  rata  before  the  feast  of  ta^is  is  called  TDT  nans. 
On  this  Sabbath  we  read  that  portion  of  the  rmn  wherein 
it  is  commanded,  that  the  memorial  of  p5&*  Amalek 


106       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

should  be  blotted  out.  Haman,  who  was  desirous  of 
destroying  the  whole  Jewish  race,  was  descended  from 
Amalek,  and  therefore,  on  this  Sabbath,  we  read  the 
chapter  relating  to  the  command  before  referred  to ;  and 
from  this  circumstance  this  Sabbath  is  called  *iOT  rims. 

tt  -    :- 

The  third  KHD  in  the  month  *na  is  called  rftfc  trans. 
On  this  day  is  read  the  chapter  in  the  Bible  relating  to 
the  offering  of  the  fittia  ms  Red  Heifer,  the  ashes  of 
which  were  made  use  of  to  purify  the  unclean.  This 
chapter  was  formerly  read,  in  order  to  remind  the  people 
to  prepare  themselves,  so  that  they  might  be  enabled  to 
keep  the  feast  of  Passover. 

The  people  who  lived  at  a  distance  from  Jerusalem, 
began  to  set  out  on  their  journey  on  the  first  day  of  the 
month  Neson,  so  that  they  might  arrive  in  due  time ; 
and  all  those  who  were  unclean  from  touchiug  a  dead 
body  were  obliged  to  be  sprinkled  with  water  on  the 
third  day,  as  also  on  the  seventh  day,  otherwise  they 
could  not  enter  the  holy  Temple. 

In  memory  of  this,  we  read  the  chapter  above  named, 
on  this  Sabbath,  and  it  is  therefore  called  m&  trans. 


tf -jinn  riKhB 

The  first  Sabbath  in  the  month  p^a  is  called  trans 
TDTinn  this  occurs  sometimes  on  the  day  of  the  New 
.Moon.  On  this  day  we  read  the  chapter  in  Exodus, 
which  contains  the  commandment  of  the  Almighty  that 
the  month  of  Neson  should  be  the  beginning  of  the 
months  of  the  year ;  as  also  an  account  of  the  manner 
in  which  the  Paschal  Lamb  was  to  be  offered.  This 
chapter  is  read  on  this  day,  in  order  to  remind  the 
people  to  prepare  themselves  for  the  festival  of  Passover 
then  approaching.  This  day  is  therefore  known  by  the 
name  of  irmnn  trans. 


A    CLASS    BOOK   FOR    JEWISH   YOUTH  107 

•  t   :  t 

The  three  festivals — the  Passover,  the  Pentecost, 
and  the  Tabernacles,  are  called  &-&31  WjtfP,  because  on 
these  festivals,  it  was  customary  for  all  the  Israelites 
to  repair  to  Jerusalem,  there  to  offer  sacrifices  to  God, 
and  praise  the  Lord  for  his  kindness.  These  visits  to 
Jerusalem  were  intended  to  excite  the  people  to  virtue 
and  religion. 

On  the  second  day  of  the  festival  of  Tabernacles,  it 
was  usual  for  the  king,  or  the  chief  of  the  nation,  to  read 
a  portion  of  the  Pentateuch  to  the  people,  to  give  them 
religious  instruction,  and  to  exhort  them  to  fear  the 
Eternal  their  God,  and  to  observe  all  the  words  of  his 
holy  law  which  was  given  as  an  inheritance  to  the  sons 
of  Israel. 

All  the  Festivals,  except  the  Day  of  Atonement,  differ 
from  the  Sabbath  in  this  respect.  On  mto  tm  we  are 
allowed  to  kindle  fire,  to  cook,  and  bake  all  our  food, 
and  do  everything  which  may  be  required  in  preparing 
our  food,  as  we  read  in  the  Bible: 

"No  labor  shall  be  done  on  the  holy  days,  but  what- 
soever serves  as  food  for  man,  this  alone  may  be  done 
for  you." 


THE    HOLY    LAW,    COMMONLY    NAMED 

rrtin  ran  rwari 

t  ••    :  t    •  -: 

PENTATEUCH,    OR    FIVE    BOOKS    OF    MOSES, 

It  is  divided  into  five  books,  the  name  of  each  book 
is  taken  from  the  first  word  with  which  such  book 
commences. 

1-  rVttf&CQ  genesis  3.  ntot^    exodus 

2.    fcOp'H    LEVITICUS  4.  TSIBS   NUMBERS 

t)  :  —  t    :  •  - 

5-  D'HD^I    DEUTERONOMY. 
•  t    : 


108  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 

GENESIS. 

This  book  is  called  Genesis.  It  signifies  Generations, 
because  it  contains  the  history  of  the  Creation  of  the 
World ;  of  the  first  ages  of  mankind ;  the  account  of  the 
flood ;  as  also  the  history  of  the  lives  of  the  Patriarchs, 
from  the  beginning  of  the  world  to  the  death  of  Joseph. 

EXODUS. 

The  word  Exodus  signifies  a  going  out,  or  departing 
from  one  place  to  another.  This  book  contains  a  full 
account  of  the  slavery  of  the  Israelites  in  Egypt,  the 
plagues  inflicted  on  Pharaoh  and  his  people,  for  their 
disobedience  to  the  command  of  God,  and  the  final 
release  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt.  It  relates  also  the 
journeying  of  the  Israelites  through  the  wilderness,  and 
how  they  were  fed  with  the  p  Manna,  which  the  Al- 
mighty caused  to  rain  from  Heaven.  This  book  describes 
also,  how  the  Almighty  vouchsafed  to  appear  on  Mount 
Sinai,  and  delivered  to  all  the  people  the  Ten  Command- 
ments. It  also  contains  a  description  of  the  Tabernacle, 
and  all  its  furniture,  which  were  devoted  to  God's  holy 
service. 

t):  — 
LEVITICUS. 

The  Book  of  Leviticus  is  so  called,  because  it  com- 
prises all  the  duties  of  the  Priests  and  the  Levites, 
together  with  a  description  of  the  sacrifices  and  offerings 
that  were  to  be  under  the  direction  of  that  holy  order  of 
men,  who  were  of  the  tribe  of  Levi. 

It  contains  also  a  series  of  religious  and  moral  laws, 
pointing  out  the  duties  man  owes  to  his  God,  to  himself, 
and  to  his  fellow-creature  ;  this  is  followed  by  the  history 
of  all  the  festivals. 


A    CLASS    BOOK   FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  109 

t    :  •  - 

NUMBERS. 

This  book  is  called  Numbers  because  it  describes  the 
numbering  of  the  people  in  the  wilderness  ;  the  history 
of  the  spies  sent  by  Moses  to  search  the  land  ;  the 
rebellion  of  Korah  and  his  party ;  the  history  of  the 
travels  of  the  Israelites  till  their  arrival  at  the  promised 
land;  as  also  the  appointment  of  Joshua  as  captain  of 
the  army  under  the  immediate  direction  of  Moses. 

•  t    : 

DEUTERONOMY. 

The  fifth  and  last  book  of  the  Pentateuch  is  called 
Deuteronomy,  which  signifies  a  repetition,  because  this 
book  recapitulates  all  the  principal  laws,  and  a  great 
portion  of  the  history  contained  in  the  previous  four 
volumes.  This  book  was  recited  by  Moses  himself  to 
the  Israelites  a  short  time  before  his  death. 

The  concluding  chapter  relates  the  death  of  Moses, 
and  how  he  was  buried  by  the  hand  of  God  himself. 
Thus  the  five  books  of  Moses  contain  the  history  of  the 
Creation  of  the  World,  and  also  the  history  of  our  nation 
to  the  death  of  W2*\  fiffifc  Moses,  our  legislator. 

The  Pentateuch  is  divided  into  fifty-two  portions 
called  mTTO  for  the  fifty-two  weeks  in  the  year.  One 
of  these  portions  is  read  every  Sabbath  till  the  whole 
Pentateuch  is  finished. 

Each  part  is  again  subdivided  into  seven  rmims  chap- 
ters which  are  read  in  the  synagogue  to  seven  persons, 
who  are  called  to  the  law  for  that  purpose.  This  is 
what  is  generally  understood  by  the  term  JTYinn  n&^p 
the  reading  of  the  law. 

The  portion  of  the  day  being  finished,  the  eighth  per- 
son is  called  to  read  a  portion  of  the  Prophets  called 
mts&n  conclusion. 


10 


110       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Mondays  and  Thursdays  are  also  called  among  us 
days  for  reading  the  law.  On  these  days,  as  also  on 
MM  Sabbath  to  nmft  afternoon  service,  we  read  the 
first  chapter  of  the  portion  intended  to  be  read  on  the 
following  Sabbath.  Moses,  our  law-giver,  and  the  pro- 
phets who  succeeded  him,  directed  that  a  portion  of  the 
law  should  be  read  on  these  days,  so  that  the  people 
might  not  be  three  days  without  reading  in  the  Law  of 
God. 


mBsn 

tt    ;  - 


CONCLUSION. 

The  event  which  gave  rise  to  the  reading  of  the  tTttasn 
or  portion  of  the  Prophets  is  as  follows  : 

After  Antiochus  Epiphanes  had  smitten  the  Egypt- 
ians, he  made  war  with  Israel  in  Jerusalem,  used  the 
people  very  cruelly,  and  polluted  the  Holy  Temple.  He 
then  gave  orders  to  destroy  all  the  books  belonging  to 
the  Israelites,  and  prohibiting  the  reading  of  the  weekly 
portions  of  the  law  on  the  Sabbath. 

At  this  time,  the  people  selected  certain  chapters  in 
the  Books  of  the  Prophets,  which  corresponded,  as  nearly 
as  possible,  with  the  text  of  the  weekly  portion  of  the 
Pentateuch.  These  chapters  were  read  instead  of 
the  portion  of  the  iTVin.  This  practice  was  continued 
until  the  time  of  Judas  Maccabees,  who,  assisted  by  his 
party,  conquered  the  cruel  Antiochus.  After  this  con- 
quest, the  reading  of  the  weekly  portions  of  the  rmri  was 
resumed. 

In  commemoration  of  this  event,  we  continue,  at  this 
day,  to  read  the  portion  of  the  Prophets  on  every  Sabbath 
and  Festivals,  after  the  reading  of  the  Law.  This  is 
therefore  called  mttsn  Conclusion. 


In  obedience  to  the  command  of  the  Almighty,  as 


A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH  111 

contained  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  the  Book  of  Num- 
bers, every  male  of  the  Jewish  nation  must  wear  a  gar- 
ment made  with  four  corners,  having  fringes  fixed  at 
each  corner.  These  fringes  are  called  fi^S  or,  me- 
morial fringes  ;  and  the  garment  upon  which  they  are 
placed  is  termed  m&35  3>ma  from  its  having  four  corners. 

In  the  synagogue,  during  the  morning  prayers,  a  scarf, 
with  fringes  attached  to  it,  is  worn,  which  is  called  tt*6t3 
scarf,  or  veil. 

These  n^X  memorial  fringes  typically  point  out  the 
six  hundred  and  thirteen  precepts  contained  in  the  volume 
of  the  Sacred  Law.  They  are  also  intended  to  remind 
us  of  the  goodness  of  the  Almighty  in  having  delivered 
our  forefathers  from  the  slavery  of  Egypt,  which  may 
be  considered  as  the  commencement  of  our  being  formed 
into  a  nation;  and,  therefore  if,  when  repeating  the 
following  chapter,  and  when  looking  at  these  memorial 
fringes,  we  duly  reflect  on  the  salutary  lessons  they  teach 
us,  and  minutely  consider  their  importance,  we  shall  then 
be  induced  to  act  with  temperance  on  all  occasions ;  with 
fortitude  under  affliction  ;  and  finally,  prudence  and 
justice  will  govern  all  our  actions. 

aAnd  the  Lord  spake  unto  Moses,  saying, 

"Speak  unto  the  children  of  Israel,  and  bid  them  that 
they  make  them  fringes  on  the  borders  of  their  garments 
throughout  their  generations;  and  that  they  put  upon 
the  fringe  of  the  borders  a  ribband  of  blue. 

"And  it  shall  be  unto  you  for  a  fringe,  that  ye  may 
look  upon  it,  and  remember  all  the  Commandments  of 
the  Lord,  and  do  them ;  and  that  ye  seek  not  after  your 
own  heart,  and  your  own  eyes,  after  which  ye  used  to 
turn. 

"That  ye  may  remember,  and  do  all  my  Commands 
ments,  and  be  holy  unto  your  God. 

"I  am  the  Lord  your  God,  who  brought  you  out  of  the 
land  of  Egypt,  to  be  your  God :  I  am  the  Lord  your 
God." — Numbers  xv.  37. 


112  A   CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 


ffilQ 


PHYLACTERIES. 


We  are  commanded  in  our  Holy  Law,  "And  thou 
shalt  bind  them  for  a  sign  upon  thine  hand,  and  they  shall 
be  as  frontlets  between  thine  eyes." 

There  are,  therefore,  two  *pS&n  the  one  is  called 
*jh  ^  yij&r)  which  we  bind  upon  the  hand ;  and  the  other 
is  called  izr&n  bin  pisn  which  is  worn  on  the  forehead. 

The  Tephillin  contain  four  sections  of  the  Pentateuch, 
which  relate  the  redemption  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt. 

Every  boy,  at  the  age  of  thirteen,  commences  to  make 
use  of  the  Tephillin,  which  must  be  worn  at  least  during 
the  time  of  the  morning  prayers.  The  ordinance  of  the 
Tephillin,  is  one  of  the  signs  of  the  covenant,  existing 
between  the  Almighty  and  ourselves,  that  we  may  con- 
tinually bear  in  mind  the  miracles  which  God  wrought 
for  our  forefathers,  when  He  brought  them  forth  from 
Egypt,  where  they  had  been  so  cruelly  treated  by  the 
Egyptians;  as  described  in  the  Holy  Bible. 

On  the  Sabbath  and  the  Festivals,  the  Tephillin  are 
not  used.  The  Sabbath  and  festivals  being  devoted  to 
the  service  of  the  Lord,  are  considered  as  a  sign  of  the 
covenant,  between  God  and  his  people.  The  Tephillin, 
therefore,  being  also  a  sign  of  the  covenant,  are,  on  these 
occasions,  dispensed  with,  for,  whoever  religiously  keeps 
the  Sabbath,  acknowledges  the  Almighty  to  have  created 
the  world  in  six  days,  and  to  have  rested  on  the  seventh 
day.  The  same  rule  is  observed  with  regard  to  the 
festivals. 

Each  of  the  Tephillin  contain  the  four  following  sections 
of  the  Pentateuch. 

First,  from  the  fourth  verse  to  the  tenth  verse  of  the 
sixth  chapter  of  the  Deuteronomy. 

Second,  from  the  thirteenth  verse  to  the  end  of  the 
twenty-first  verse  of  the  eleventh  chapter  of  Deuteronomy. 

Third,  from  the  first  verse  to  the  tenth  verse  of  the 
thirteenth  chapter  of  Exodus. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       113 

Fourth,  from  the  eleventh  verse  to  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  verse  of  the  aforenamed  chapter. 

FIRST. 

Hear,  0  Israel,  the  Lord  our  God  is  one  God.  And 
thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thine  heart, 
and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  might.  And 
these  words,  which  I  command  thee  this  day,  shall  be  in 
thine  heart.  And  thou  shalt  teach  them  diligently  unto 
thy  children,  and  shalt  talk  of  them  when  thou  sittest 
in  thine  house,  and  when  thou  walkest  by  the  way,  and 
when  thou  liest  down,  and  when  thou  risest  up.  And 
thou  shalt  bind  them  for  a  sign  upon  thine  hand,  and 
they  shall  be  as  frontlets  between  thine  eyes.  And  thou 
shalt  write  them  upon  the  door-posts  of  thy  house,  and 
upon  thy  gates. 

SECOND. 

And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  ye  shall  hearken  dili- 
gently unto  my  commandments,  which  I  command  you 
this  day,  to  love  the  Lord  your  God,  and  to  serve  him 
with  all  your  heart,  and  with  all  your  soul, 

That  I  will  give  you  the  rain  of  your  land  in  its  due 
season — the  first  rain  and  the  latter  rain — that  thou 
mayest  gather  in  thy  corn,  and  thy  wine,  and  thine  oil. 
And  I  will  send  grass  in  thy  field  for  thy  cattle,  that 
thou  mayest  eat  and  be  full. 

Take  heed  to  yourselves,  that  your  heart  be  not 
deceived,  and  ye  turn  aside,  and  serve  other  gods,  and 
worship  them.  And  then  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  will  be 
kindled  against  you,  and  he  shut  up  the  heaven,  that 
there  be  no  rain,  and  that  the  land  yield  not  her  fruit ; 
and  lest  ye  perish  quickly  from  off  the  good  land  which 
the  Lord  giveth  you.  Therefore,  ye  shall  lay  up  these 
my  words  in  your  heart,  and  in  your  soul,  and  bind 
them  for  a  sign  upon  your  hand,  that  they  may  be  as 
frontlets  between  your  eyes. 

And  ye  shall  teach  them  unto  your  children,  speak- 
ing of  them  when  thou  sittest  in  thine  house,  and  when 


114       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

thou  walkest  by  the  way,  when  thou  liest  down,  and 
when  thou  risest  up.  And  thou  shalt  write  them  upon 
the  door-posts  of  thine  house,  and  upon  thy  gates.  That 
your  days  may  be  multiplied,  and  the  days  of  your 
children,  in  the  land  which  the  Lord  sware  unto  your 
fathers  to  give  them,  as  the  days  of  heaven  upon  the 
earth. 

THIRD. 

And  the  Lord  spoke  unto  Moses,  saying  : 

Sanctify  unto  me  all  the  first  born  among  the  children 
of  Israel,  both  of  man  and  of  beast ;  it  is  mine.  And 
Moses  said  unto  the  people,  Remember  this  day,  in 
which  ye  came  out  from  Egypt  out  of  the  house  of 
bondage  ;  for  by  strength  of  hand  the  Lord  brought  you 
out  from  this  place;  there  shall  no  leavened  bread  be 
eaten.  This  day  came  ye  out,  in  the  month  of  Abib. 
And  it  shall  be  when  the  Lord  shall  bring  thee  into  the 
land  of  the  Canaanites,  and  the  Hittites,  and  the  Amor- 
ites,  and  the  Hivites,  and  the  Jebusites,  which  he  sware 
unto  thy  fathers  to  give  thee,  a  land  flowing  with  milk 
and  honey,  that  thou  shalt  keep  this  service  in  this 
month.  Seven  days  thou  shalt  eat  unleavened  bread, 
and  on  the  seventh  day  shall  be  a  feast  to  the  Lord. 
Unleavened  bread  shall  be  eaten  seven  days,  and  there 
shall  no  leavened  bread  be  seen  with  thee,  neither  shall 
there  be  leaven  seen  with  thee  in  all  thy  quarters. 

And  thou  shalt  shew  thy  son  in  that  day,  saying, 
This  is  done  because  of  that,  which  the  Lord  did  unto 
me  when  1  came  forth  out  of  Egypt. 

And  it  shall  be  for  a  sign  unto  thee  upon  thine  hand, 
and  for  a  memorial  between  thine  eyes,  that  the  Lord's 
law  may  be  in  thy  mouth ;  for  with  a  strong  hand  hath 
the  Lord  brought  thee  out  of  Egypt.  Thou  shalt  there- 
fore keep  this  ordinance  in  its  season  from  year  to  year. 

FOURTH. 

And  it  shall  be,  when  the  Lord  shall  bring  thee  into 
the  land  of  the  Canaanites,  as  he  sware  unto  thee,  and 
to  thy  fathers,  and  shall  give  it  to  thee ; 


A    CLASS    BOOK   FOR   JEWISH   YOUTH  115 

That  thou  shalt  set  apart  unto  the  Lord  every  first- 
born which  thou  hast ;  the  males  shall  be  the  Lord's. 
And  every  first-born  of  an  ass  thou  shalt  redeem  with  a 
lamb,  and  if  thou  wilt  not  redeem  it,  then  thou  shalt 
break  its  neck,  and  all  the  first-born  of  man  among  thy 
children  thou  shalt  redeem. 

And  it  shall  he  when  thy  son  asketh  thee  in  time  to 
come,  saying,  what  is  this?  that  thou  shalt  say  unto 
him,  By  strength  of  hand  the  Lord  brought  us  out  of 
Egypt,  from  the  house  of  bondage. 

And  it  came  to  pass,  when  Pharaoh  would  hardly  let 
us  go,  that  the  Lord  slew  all  the  first-born  in  the  land 
of  Egypt,  both  the  first-born  of  man,  and  the  first-born 
of  beast;  therefore  I  sacrifice  unto  the  Lord  every  male ; 
but  all  the  first-born  of  my  children  I  redeem.  And  it 
shall  be  for  a  token  upon  thine  hand,  and  for  frontlets 
between  thine  eyes,  for  by  strength  of  hand,  the  Lord 
brought  us  forth  out  of  Egypt. 


nnto 

t      : 


We  are  commanded  in  our  Holy  Law,  "And  thou 
shalt  write  them  upon  the  door-posts  of  thine  house,  and 
upon  thy  gates." 

The  following  two  portions  of  the  Pentateuch,  contain- 
ing this  commandment,  are  written  in  Hebrew,  on  parch- 
ment, and  the  word  ^TO  signifying  Almighty,  is  written 
on  the  outside  of  the  parchment.  The  manuscript  is 
placed  either  in  a  piece  of  lead  or  tin,  and  fastened  on 
the  post  of  every  door  in  the  house,  and  it  is  therefore 
called  Mezuzoh,  which  signifies  "a  door  post."  The 
word  ^izj  only  is  seen ;  it  is  so  placed  that  every  time 
we  go  in  and  out  of  our  doors,  it  may  be  in  our  presence; 
and  that,  when  seriously  looking  at  this  word,  which  is 
the  name  of  the  Great  and  Good  God,  we  may  be  induced 
to  reflect  on  his  kindness  and  grace  toward  us  at  all 
times,  and  at  all  seasons.  And  such  reflection  will  not 
fail  to  call  to  our  minds  the  necessity  of  constantly 


116       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

putting  our  trust  in  the  mercy  of  God ;  for  the  safety 
of  our  houses  and  our  property  entirely  depends  on  the 
protection  of  the  Almighty,  who  is  the  guardian  of  all 
those  who  look  up  to  him  for  help,  in  time  of  need. 

Let  us,  therefore,  whenever  we  enter  our  houses,  look 
up  to  the  ineffable  name  of  the  Deity  so  conspicuously 
placed  before  our  eyes,  and  contemplate  his  works. 
And  we  shall  thus  be  led  to  admire,  to  love,  and  to 
venerate  his  holy  name ;  and  eventually  deserve  a 
continuance  of  his  divine  favor.     Amen. 

FIRST. 

Hear,  O  Israel,  the  Lord  our  God  is  one  God.  And 
thou  shalt  love  the  Lord,  thy  God,  with  all  thine  heart, 
and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  might.  And 
these  wrords,  which  I  command  thee  this  day,  shall  be 
in  thine  heart.  And  thou  shalt  teach  them  diligently 
unto  thy  children,  and  shalt  talk  of  them  when  thou 
sittest  in  thine  house,  and  when  thou  walkest  by  the 
way,  and  when  thou  liest  down,  and  when  thou  risest  up. 
And  thou  shalt  bind  them  for  a  sign  upon  thine  hand, 
and  they  shall  be  as  frontlets  between  thine  eyes.  And 
thou  shalt  write  them  upon  the  door  posts  of  thine  house, 
and  upon  thy  gates. 

SECOND. 

And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  if  ye  shall  hearken  dili- 
gently unto  my  commandments,  which  I  command  you 
this  day,  to  love  the  Lord  your  God,  and  to  serve  him 
with  all  your  heart,  and  with  all  your  soul, 

That  I  will  give  you  the  rain  of  your  land  in  its  due 
season — the  first  rain  and  the  latter  rain, — that  thou 
mayest  gather  in  thy  corn,  and  thy  wine,  and  thine  oil. 
And  I  will  send  grass  in  thy  field  for  thy  cattle,  that 
thou  mayest  eat,  and  be  full. 

Take  heed  to  yourselves,  that  your  heart  be  not 
deceived,  and  ye  turn  aside,  and  serve  other  gods,  and 
worship  them.  And  then  the  wrath  of  the  Lord  will  be 
kindled  against  you ;  and  he  shut  up  the  Heaven,  that 
there  be  no  rain ;  and  that  the  land  yield  not  her  fruit ; 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH     *  117 

and  lest  ye  perish  quickly  off  the  good  land  which  the 
Lord  giveth  you.  Therefore,  ye  shall  lay  up  these  my 
words  in  your  heart,  and  in  your  soul,  and  bind  them 
for  a  sign  upon  your  hand,  that  they  may  be  as  frontlets 
between  your  eyes. 

And  ye  shall  teach  them  unto  your  children,  speaking 
of  them  when  thou  sittest  in  thine  house,  and  when  thou 
walkest  by  the  way,  when  thou  liest  down,  and  when 
thou  risest  up.  And  thou  shalt  write  them  upon  the 
door-posts  of  thine  house,  and  upon  thy  gates,  that  your 
days  may  be  multiplied,  and  the  days  of  your  children, 
in  the  land  which  the  Lord  sware  unto  your  fathers  to 
give  them,  as  the  days  of  Heaven  upon  the  earth. 


A    TREATISE    ON    THE    CHAPTER   OF 
••   t  :    •        -  : 

This  chapter  is  directed  by  our  wise  men  (who  com- 
posed our  excellent  prayers)  to  be  devoutly  uttered  three 
times  a  day,  viz. :  morning,  evening,  and  at  night, 
previously  to  retiring  to  rest. 

Our  wise  men  particularly  exhort  us  to  read  this 
chapter  distinctly,  that  is  to  say,  to  utter  it  in  a 
manner  so  that  we  may  hear  our  own  words ;  that  we 
may  feel  the  force  of  them,  and  thus  be  led  to  attend  to 
the  useful  lessons  they  teach  us  ;  in  truth,  there  is  no 
prayer  more  important  than  this ;  and  it  is,  therefore, 
one  of  the  first  lessons  taught  in  earliest  age  to  our 
children,  with  a  view  of  indelibly  fixing  it  in  the  mind 
of  every  child,  so  that  its  impression  may  gradually 
grow  up  with  it,  never  to  be  forgotten. 

This  chapter  was  addressed  to  our  forefathers,  the 
children  of  Israel,  by  the  divine  law-giver,  Moses,  a 
short  time  previously  to  his  death.  It  is  founded  on  the 
principles  deducible  from  the  first  of  the  Decalogue,  or 
Ten  Commandments,  which  teaches  us  that  the  Great 
and  Almighty  God,  who  brought  our  forefathers  out  of 
the  land  of  Egypt,  and  who  revealed  himself  on  Mount 


118  A    CLASS    BOOK    FOR   JEWISH    YOUTH 

Sinai,  and  declared  himself  to  be  Israel's  God,  is  the 
only  Being  whom  we  are  to  worship  and  adore  ;  and  as 
the  proper  idea  of  the  existence  of  God,  and  of  our  duty 
towards  him  is  the  foundation  of  true  religion,  the  earnest 
belief  in  which  leads  us  to  perfect  happiness,  Moses,  our 
legislator,  begins  to  address  his  people  as  follws  :  Hear, 
O  Israel,  or  rather,  attend  and  take  notice,  and  reflect 
on  that,  which  I  am  about  to  say  to  you :  The  Lord  our 
God,  the  Great  and  Almighty  Power,  who  has  wrought 
so  many  miracles  for  us  and  wTho  has  vouchsafed  to  ma- 
nifest himself  on  Mount  Sinai,  to  instruct  us,  and  favor 
us  with  the  best  of  all  gifts — his  holy  law. 

The  Lord  is  one  God ;  there  is  none  like  him.  He 
is  one  in  his  nature.  He  is  the  only  Unit.  There  is 
not,  there  cannot  be  any  other,  for  there  cannot  possibly 
be  but  one  Creator  of  the  Universe,  which  is  perfect  and 
complete  in  all  its  parts.  And  this  God,  who  daily 
sheds  his  blessings  on  all  his  creatures,  is  a  Being  whom 
we  must  adore,;  revere,  and  love  most  earnestly  and 
sincerely,  with  all  our  heart.  We  must  devote  our- 
selves to  his  service,  with  all  our  soul.  We  must  spare 
no  trouble  nor  expense  in  the  performance  of  our  duty 
towards  him,  we  must  do  it  with  all  our  might  and  all 
our  power. 

We  must  love  the  Lord,  our  God,  as  dearly  in  our 
hearts,  as  we  are  capable  of  loving  ourselves,  or  any 
one  that  is  dear  to  us.  We  must  love  him  with  all  our 
soul,  that  we  must  even  sacrifice  our  existence,  rather 
than  forsake  our  God,  or  our  religion.  We  must  love 
him  with  all  our  power,  and  with  all  our  means,  and 
suffer  no  expense  nor  trouble  to  prevent  us  from  fulfilling 
our  duty  towards  him,  in  obeying  all  that  he  has  com- 
manded us.  In  truth,  we  are  bound  to  do  all  this^  in 
gratitude  for  God's  daily  favors  unto  us. 

Thus  continues  Moses,  Let  the  words  I  now  say  to 
you  make  a  proper  impression  on  your  hearts.  Teach 
them  repeatedly  to  your  children,  when  thou  sittest  in 
thine  house,  and  when  thou  walkest  by  the  way,  when 
thou  liest  down,  and  when  thou  risest  up,  signifying  at 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       119 

all  times  and  at  all  seasons ;  for  there  is  no  action  in 
life  which  does  not  give  occasion  to  call  to  our  minds  the 
goodness  of  God.  Every  motion  of  our  body  shows  the 
wonderful  fabric  with  which  the  Creator  has  formed  us ; 
and  therefore  every  action  through  life  should  be  guided 
by  that  reason  which  distinguishes  man  from  the  brute 
creation.  If,  then,  we  reflect  on  all  this,  we  never  can 
forget  the  goodness  of  the  Almighty  God,  and  conse- 
quently never  neglect  our  duty  towards  him.  With  this 
impression,  Moses,  our  legislator,  exhorts  us,  "Bind 
these  sentiments  as  a  sign  upon  your  arm,  and  let  them 
crown  your  heads."  All  our  wise  arrangements  and 
contrivances  to  make  ourselves  comfortable  in  this  world, 
we  owe  to  that  knowledge  with  which  the  Almighty  has 
blessed  us.  We  daily  see  the  happy  effects  of  it,  and 
therefore  we  ought  always  to  bear  it  in  mind  when  Ave 
enter  our  houses  and  our  dwellings  ;  and  therefore  s&y$ 
Moses,  "And  thou  shalt  write  them  upon  the  door-posts 
of  thine  house,  and  upon  thy  gates. 

If  we  look  around  us  on  entering  our  houses,  we  can- 
not fail  to  be  impressed  with  the  fact  that  the  safety  of 
our  house  entirely  depends  on  the  will  of  God  !  that  all 
human  inventions  may  fail!  that  our  house  may  fall 
about  our  ears !  that  a  storm  may  destroy  it !  lightning 
may  burn  it !  or  a  flood  of  waters  may  wash  it  away. 

A  little  serious  consideration  will  bring  this  home  to 
our  thoughts ;  and  we  shall  thus  be  induced  to  bend  our 
soul  in  gratitude  to  the  Almighty  God,  who  continually 
bestows  gracious  favours  on  all  his  creatures. 

Our  wise  men  (of  blessed  memory)  whose  lives  were 
devoted  to  the  spiritual  welfare  of  their  nation,  have, 
for  our  guidance,  explained  the  latter  part  of  this  chapter 
in  a  manner,  that  we  may,  by  an  external  evidence,  show 
our  obedience  and  sense  of  its  meaning.  And  thou  shalt 
bind  them  for  a  sign  upon  thine  hand,  and  as  frontlets 
between  thine  eyes,  signifies  the  y^Dtl  Phy-lac-ie-ries, 
which  are  directed  to  be  placed  on  the  arm  and  on  the 
forehead;  and  more  particularly  on  the  left  arm,  it 
being  nearest  the  heart,  so  that  the  heart  and  mind, 


120       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

being  so  nearly  allied  to  each  other,  may  be  conjointly 
employed  in  time  of  prayer,  to  consider  the  purposes  for 
which  the  Tephillin  are  used,  and  contemplate  the 
excellent  lessons  we  are  taught  by  them,  viz. :  the  ado- 
ration and  worship  of  the  Divine  Creator. 

Our  sages,  who  have  made  this  ordinance  so  clear  to 
our  understanding,  and  have  instituted  it  as  an  im- 
pressive custom,  have,  at  the  same  time,  pointed  out  for 
our  encouragment,  the  beneficial  results  from  a  regular 
observance  of  the  same. 

Like  most  of  the  aphorisms  of  our  wise  men  which  are 
veiled  in  allegory,  the  literal  meaning  of  the  expressions 
used  by  them  on  this  occasion,  would  convey  but  a  very 
faint  idea  of  the  bounteous  reward  they  have  attached 
to  the  observance  of  the  Tephillin;  but  by  a  little 
reflection  we  shall  be  enabled  to  trace  the  beautifully 
simple,  yet  elegant  and  sublime  exhortations  to  religion 
and  morality  contained  in  most  of  their  aphorisms. 

Thus  say  the  wise  men : — He  who  regularly  puts  on 
these  y^lMi  is  certain  of  enjoying  a  future  state;  no 
punishment  hereafter  can  await  him ;  and  all  his  sins 
are  pardoned. 

So  bounteous  a  reward  for  the  observance  of  apparently 
so  trifling  a  custom  is  sufficient  to  induce  the  most  callous 
amongst  us,  regularly  and  rigidly  to  observe  this  ordi- 
nance. This  is  not  to  be  taken  in  its  literal  sense  !  It 
is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  mere  act  of  putting  on 
the  Tephillin  will  ensure  us  the  promised  blessings ; 
certainly  not.  But  if,  at  the  time  we  put  on  these 
Tephillin,  we  seriously  reflect  on  our  duty  to  our  God; 
if  we  minutely  observe  the  wholesome  lessons  they  teach 
us,  and  guide  our  conduct  accordingly ;  if  we  devoutly 
turn  our  thoughts  to  the  subject,  and  we  are  religiously 
excited  to  the  performance  of  all  these  acts  which  are 
pointed  out  for  our  good,  we  shall  naturally  be  virtuous 
and  truly  religious.  And  he  who  is  truly  religious  is 
certainly  deserving  of  all  the  bliss  and  happiness  destined 
for  human  creatures  to  enjoy. 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH      121 

And  thus  it  is  that  our  religious  feelings  are  carried 
onward  to  the  very  last  moments  of  our  existence. 

This  chapter  bairc^  Pnw  is  likewise  the  last  expres- 
sion of  the  dying  Israelite,  who,  at  the  moment  of  death, 
(if  capable),  emphatically  utters  it  himself,  or  at  least 
closes  his  career  in  this  transitory  scene,  with  the  im- 
pression made  by  its  being  said  by  his  surrounding 
friends. 

Happy  is  that  man  who  departs  this  world  with  such 
sentiments,  acknowledging  the  Supreme  God  in  the  hour 
of  death ;  and  still  happier  must  that  man  be  whose 
whole  life  has  been  guided  by  such  devotion,  and  who 
has  always  been  impressed  with  the  conviction  that 

t  v     t:  ••     v:    t: 

The  Eternal,  our  God,  the  Eternal  is  one. 


IKft 


PROPER,    OR    FIT    FOR    USE. 

Every  Israelite  is  particularly  exhorted  in  the  law  of 
Moses,  to  be  cleanly  in  his  person,  and  in  his  food ;  and 
for  his  guidance,  laws  are  laid  down  pointing  out  what 
description  of  animals  may  be  eaten,  and  those  which 
may  not  be  eaten.  We  are  particularly  forbidden  to 
eat  of  any  animal  that  does  not  chew  the  cud,  and  like- 
wise part  the  hoof. 

Respecting  fish,  we  must  not  eat  any  but  such  that 
have  both  fins  and  scales ;  and  therefore  all  shell  fish 
axe  prohibited. 

Considering  the  different  kinds  of  fowls  and  birds  j 
all  those  that  are  unclean,  are  specifically  detailed  in  the 
Bible,  in  the  thirteenth  chapter  of  the  Book  of  Leviticus  ; 
and,  therefore,  all  those  that  are  not  mentioned,  are 
deemed  clean  and  fit  to  be  eaten.  We  are  not  allowed 
to  eat  of  any  animal  that  dies  of  itself. 

All  animals  used  for  food,  must  be  killed  by  one  of 
our  own  nation,  who  is  appointed  by  the  congregation 
for  that  purpose.     He  is  called  the  tar™  or  killer. 
11 


122       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

After  the  animal  is  killed,  it  is  carefully  examined 
as  to  whether  it  might  have  been  afflicted  with  any 
disease ;  if  so,  it  mu.-t  not  be  eaten.  We  are  strictly 
forbidden  to  eat  any  blood ;  for  the  life  of  animals  con- 
sists in  the  blood,  and  it  is  considered  unnatural  to  eat 
that,  which  contains  life.  In  order,  therefore,  strictly 
to  observe  this  commandment,  ail  possible  precaution  is 
taken  to  extract  every  particle  of  blood  from  the  meat. 

The  cleansing  of  meat  from  blood  is  understood  by 
the  term  *nz)D,  which  signifies  fit  and  proper  to  be  eaten. 
The  word  flS-fl?  is  made  use  of  to  signify,  that  it  is  not 
fit  to  be  eaten.  The  term  ns^to  is  not  strictly  correct^ 
it  should  be  lioa  forbidden.  The  word  rtETJ  literally 
means  that  which  is  torn  in  pieces  by  a  ferocious  animal. 

We  are  also  forbidden  to  eat  of  the  hind  quarters  of 
any  animal,  in  accordance  with  the  ordinance  laid  down 
in  the  Book  of  Genesis,  at  the  time  our  forefather  Jacob 
wrestled  with  the  angel. 

"Therefore,  the  children  of  Israel  eat  not  the  sinew 
which  shrank,  which  is  upon  the  hollow  of  the  thigh, 
unto  this  day.55 

We  are  commanded  in  our  holy  law,  "thou  shalt  not 
seethe  a  kid  in  its  mother5s  milk,55  from  which  is 
deduced,  that  we  must  not  eat  izr.z  "tea  meat  and  butter, 
at  one  and  the  same  time.  In  order  properly  to  obey  this 
commandment,  we  accustom  ourselves  to  wait  a  certain 
period  after  having  eaten  meat,  before  we  eat  butter. 


ni:oN 


MOURNING    FOR    THE    DEAD. 

Our  Rabbins,  of  blessed  memory,  have  laid  down  certain 
rules  by  which  we  should  regulate  our  conduct  on  the 
demise  of  eight  of  our  nearest  relations,  viz.  :  father, 
mother,  brother,  sister,  son,  daughter,  husband  or  wife. 
fittn  mb.  Conducting  the  dead  to  the  grave,  is  in- 
stituted by  our  wise  men  as  an  important  duty ;  not 
only   from  respect  to  the  dead,  but  as  a  lesson  to  the 


A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH       123 

living;  that  man  should,  at  all  times,  consider  that  he 
is  but  an  humble  mortal,  and  that  he  is  accountable  for 
all  his  actions  through  life. 

Previous  to  the  mb  funeral,  a  rent  is  made  in  one  of 
our  garments  as  a  token  of  grief.  This  ceremony  is  of 
very  ancient  date;  it  is  mentioned  in  the  Holy  Scripture 
to  have  taken  place  in  the  time  of  the  Patriarch  Jacob, 
who  rent  his  clothes,  and  mourned  for  his  son  Joseph, 
who  was  supposed  to  have  been  torn  in  pieces  by  a  wild 
beast. 

This  rent  in  the  garment  is  called  R^hf*. 

As  soon  as  the  funeral  is  ended,  the  days  of  mourning 
commence,  which  continue  seven  days;  these  seven 
days  of  mourning  are  called  POT©.  During  this  time 
the  mourners  do  not  quit  their  houses,  nor  attend  to  any 
business.  The  mourners  are  daily  visited  by  their  friends 
who  come  to  condole  with  them  on  their  bereavement. 

This  ceremony  of  n9M  is  supposed  to  take  its  origin 
from  the  death  of  Jacob,  whose  children  mourned  for 
him  seven  days  at  the  threshing-floor  of  Atad,  as  stated 
in  Genesis,  chapter  fifty. 

Every  morning  and  evening  during  the  HMffl  prayers 
are  said  at  the  house  of  the  mourner  with  ys&; 

*p3?a  signifies  the  meeting  of  ten  persons,  or  more,  at 
one  time  to  say  prayers. 

During  thirty  days  from  the  funeral  we  must  not 
shave,  or  indulge  ourselves  in  any  of  those  enjoyments 
to  which  we  are  accustomed  on  ordinary  occasions. 
These  thirty  days  are  called  D"»iabi. 

The  observance  of  the  tPioitai  takes  its  rise  from  the 
death  of  Moses,  our  law-giver,  for  whom  the  children 
of  Israel  mourned  during  thirty  days. 

On  the  death  of  a  parent  the  tairobE  must  be  kept 
thirty-one  days. 

During  eleven  months  succeeding  the  death  of  a 
parent,  every  male  child  is  enjoined  to  attend  the  syna- 
gogue regularly  morning  and  evening,  and  to  say  the 
prayer  called  E'Hp  which  is  an  ejaculatory  praise  to  the 


124       A  CLASS  BOOK  FOR  JEWISH  YOUTH 

Almighty,  composed  for  our  use  by  the  sages  of  blessed 
memory. 

The  mourning  for  a  parent  continues  twelve  months, 
but  the  imp  is  said  only  during  eleven  months. 

Every  year  on  the  same  day  of  the  month,  that  a 
parent  had  died,  the  orphan  repeats  this  Kaddish,  as 
when  he  was  an  3-a  mourner.  This  day  is  generally 
known  amongst  us  by  the  name  of  Jahrzeit,  which  is  a 
German  idiom  for  the  anniversary  of  the  death  of  a  parent. 

Persons  who  visit  the  mourners,  during  the  week  of 
the  nates ,  say  the  following  on  retiring  from  the  room : 

o^tfrm  ri?s  ^un  -mi  ay  dDBM  any  Won 

"May  the  Almighty  comfort  ye  with  the  rest  of  the 
mourners  of  Zion  and  Jerusalem." 


TRANSLATION  OF  THE  E*Hp  AS  SAID  BY  ORPHANS 
DURING  ELEVEN  MONTHS  AFTER  THE  DEATH  OF  A 
PARENT. 

May  his  great  name  be  exalted  and  sanctified  accord- 
ing to  his  will,  in  the  world  which  he  has  created.  May 
he  establish  his  kingdom  in  your  lifetime,  and  in  your 
days,  and  in  the  lifetime  of  the  whole  house  of  Israel 
speedily,  and  in  a  short  time,  and  say  ye,  Amen. 

May  his  great  name  be  praised  for  ever  and  ever. 
Praised,  glorified,  exalted,  magnified,  honored,  and 
greatly  adored  be  his  holy  name ;  blessed  be  he,  far 
above  all  blessings,  hymns,  praises,  and  expressions  of 
consolation,  that  are  repeated  throughout  the  world; 
and  say  ye,  Amen. 

May  the  fullness  of  peace  from  Heaven,  with  life,  be 
granted  to  us  and  all  Israel;  and  say  ye,  Amen. 

He  who  maketh  peace  in  the  high  Heavens ;  he  will 
bestow  peace  upon  us  and  all  Israel ;  and  say  ye,  Amen. 


VI 

H  DAY  USE 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  A»+ 

?^are  sub,e«  to  immediate  recall. 


rr.,-Gen.eraI  Library 


Ilfi1 


